kitchen hell

Dutch Baby Pancake

2012-01-06T17:00:00.000-05:00

I'd never heard of a dutch baby pancake before...

But just as I was starting to think about New Year's Day breakfast, Martha, bless her heart, sent me this recipe and it sounded like the perfect way to start off the new year...

And it turns out it was.

Dutch Baby Pancake

courtesy of Martha Stewart

click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

NOTE: I'm providing the recipe as we followed it, but next time I make this, I'll probably cut the lemon juice by 25%. It was good, don't get me wrong, but just a little too much lemon for our personal tastes. Also, Martha claims this serves 4. I say, 4 children, maybe, but for adults? 2 of us had no problem finishing this whatsoever...

3 tbsp butter, divided

3 eggs
3/4 c whole milk
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 c plus 1 tbsp sugar, divided

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

***

Preheat oven to 425°.

In an oven-safe, medium-sized skillet, melt 2 tbsp butter over medium heat and then set aside.

In a blender, combine eggs, milk, flour, salt, vanilla, and 1/4 c sugar. Blend until foamy, 30 seconds to 1 minute, depending on the power of your blender.

Pour batter into skillet and place skillet in the oven.

Bake ~ 20 minutes or until pancake is puffed and lightly browned.

While baking, cut the remaining tbsp of butter into small bits.

Once the pancake is cooked, remove from oven and dot with the butter bits.

Sprinkle with remaining tbsp of sugar and lemon juice.

Slice into wedges and serve immediately.

Cold Crab Dip

2012-01-05T10:14:00.001-05:00

This year it was just Jordan and I for the holidays... with the impending move, we're hoarding money like crazy and travel and gifts just didnt really fit in. However, holidays can be saved, what with the miracle of Facetime and the recreation of culinary traditions...

This is part 1 of a series i'll call "how we ate our way though the holidays"

I never knew that crab dip was a Christmas tradition for so many people... That was, until I started googling, looking for the crab dip my mom has made for the past bazillion Christmases... However, it seems most of you enjoy hot crab dip. and while i'm never one to turn up anything warm and cheesy, these holidays had specific demands - recreate the traditions...

so when google failed, i called my mom and just asked for the recipe.

duh.

Oh? Did I forget to mention that there was a block of cream cheese involved? One of my favorite culinary phrases has got to be "serve over a block of cream cheese"...

Cold Crab Dip
courtesy of my mom
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

1 c ketchup
2 tbsp horseradish
1 tbsp honey

8 oz crab meat, cleaned and picked over

8 oz block of cream cheese

***

In a small bowl, mix ketchup, horseradish and honey together.

Add in the crabmeat and stir until incorporated

Chill in the fridge for at least a half hour

Spoon the dip over the block of cream cheese and serve with your favorite butter crackers.

Reindeer Cookies

2011-12-07T14:10:00.002-05:00

Wait, what? I'm actually going to post a timely post - you know, before you need it?

And i'm going to do this in the middle of what is always my busiest time of the year, to which i've already added trying to buy a co-op and the other half of my department being on maternity leave? While I've got an awful head cold and have guests coming into town in a week?

I'm such a rockstar.

or, i thought i was until my sister told me that my 3 year old nephew had made these exact same cookies in NURSERY SCHOOL.

oh whatever. they're cute.

(sorry for the crappy cell phone camera picture. and yes, i should have
faced the Ms down - but I was REALLY tired...)

I made them for my work cookie exchange and while they were a HUGE pain to transport to the office (due to not wanting to lose the antlers, though the antlers seem way more secure than i expected), i fully expect to win (no actual award but lots of bragging rights for) cutest cookies on that exchange table...

Reindeer Cookies
courtesy of Bakergirl with slight modifications by me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

3/4 c creamy peanut butter
1 1/4 c firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 c unsalted butter (1 stick)
3 tbsp milk
1 tbsp vanilla
1 egg

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt

~ 72 chocolate-covered mini pretzels (1 box of the 100 calorie packages works)
~ 72 brown and green M&Ms
~ 36 red M&Ms in one of the larger varieties (i used pretzel but you could use peanut too...)

***

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Line baking sheets with parchment and set aside.

Combine peanut butter, brown sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed until well mixed and fluffy. (it also tastes REALLY good - sample it now, cause the egg is about to go in...)

Add egg; beat again to combine.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine.

Slowly add flour mixture to peanut butter/sugar mixture with mixer on low. Mix til combined, but do not overmix - once everything is incorporated, shut it down.

Form dough into ~1-inch balls. Place on baking sheet, an about 1.5 - 2 inches apart. Pinch one end to form a nose and then slightly flatten the entire thing. You will have a tray of alien-heads at this point.

Bake for 7 to 8 minutes, until set or just barely beginning to brown.

Remove from oven and immediately press red M&Ms into the point to make Rudolph's nose. Then place either 2 brown or 2 green M&Ms into the middle to make the eyes.

Finally, push two mini pretzels at a ~90° angle (so, sticking straight up towards the sky) into the tops of the cookies for the reindeer's antlers.

Allow to cool 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. DO NOT TOUCH antlers while cookies are cooling as the chocolate will be melty and they are precarious at this point.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Malfadine with Lemon-Asparagus Sauce

2011-10-12T11:00:00.020-04:00

When i started this blog - about 4 years ago - it was to not only share recipes, but also to share the stories behind them. I lost that somewhere along the way. i lost some of the story.

Keeping that in mind, you have to forgive me for posting this recipe at the absolute wrong time of the year. This is a spring dish if i ever tasted one. but i made it this week. When yes, it was warm, but its still october...

However. If you know me in real life, you know that i've seen more than my fair share of Better Than Ezra shows. You know that i have friends - real life friends - that i wouldnt even know if not for my hours on their messageboard and my travels to their shows. You know that when i start talking about someone you dont know, you have to ask 'is that a BTE person?' and you know that quite often, the answer will be yes.

So why is that relevant? because a funny thing happened along the way. all of us BTE people? we grew up. some became real adults and had kids. some bought houses. some moved - many times. some got married. some broke up. but through the miracle of the internet, so many of us have stayed in touch. held eachothers hands through breakups. been to eachothers weddings. sent presents to those kids. and among it all, theres a number of us who emerged as being almost as obsessed with food as we were with that band - at least 3 of us have food blogs. so now, instead of trading live show tapes, we trade recipes. We send treats to those having a hard time. and not so long ago, i sent 1.5lbs of pasta all the way to california, because one of those friends mentioned that she couldnt find malfadine near her.

now, of course, if someone wants a specific shape pasta for a specific recipe that badly, you know i have to try it too, right?

So that 1.5lbs of malfadine has been sitting in my cabinet waiting for me to get around to this...

I ended up altering the original recipe a bunch, some based on reviewers suggestions, some pulled from other recipes we've known and loved (Cacio e Pepe, i'm looking at you), but the gist is the same... these long skinny lasagna-style noodles finished in an asparagus lemon sauce that just screams SPRING! (even if its October) when you bite into it...

and if you cant find malfadine near you? drop me a line - i'm an expert at shipping it ;)

Malfadine with Lemon-Asparagus Sauce
courtesy of me, loosely adapted from Epicurious

Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

1/2 lb fresh asparagus, tough ends discarded, tips and remaining stems separated
1/2 tbsp salt

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp softened butter
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 tbsp dried parsley
1/2 tbsp lemon zest
Juice of 1/2 of a lemon
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1/2 lb malfadine or other pasta of choice

1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

***

Boil a generous amount of water (you will use this water 3 times). Once boiling, add the salt to the water. Watch the volcanic eruption. its fun.

Chop asparagus stems into 1-2" segments. Cook the segments in the boiling water for 6-7 minutes or until very tender. Transfer segments to a colander, reserving cooking water in pot (a slotted spoon or small strainer works well), and rinse under cold water. Set aside.

Cook asparagus tips in same boiling water until just tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer tips to a colander, again reserving cooking water in pot and rinse under cold water and set aside,

Purée asparagus stems with oil, butter, garlic, parsley, zest, lemon juice, black pepper and 1/4 cup asparagus cooking water. (be careful, that water is hot)

Cook pasta in boiling asparagus cooking water for about 3/4 the amount of time suggested for al dente pasta. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, drain pasta and remaining water out of the pan.

Return pasta to the dry pan. Add in the asparagus tips, the pureed sauce and the reserved water and cook over high heat, stirring frequently to prevent burning and to ensure the ingredients are combining well. Allow to cook ~ 3 minutes, or until pasta is al dente, and the sauce has thickened and coats pasta well. (it will still be too 'loose' at this point - thats ok, the cheese will help...)

Remove from the heat and stir in Parmigiano-Reggiano. Stir until cheese is meltedand well combined.

Serve immediately, adding salt to taste.

Introducing Pepperplate links!

2011-10-10T17:00:00.000-04:00

(i'm going to wax poetic about my ipad for a moment here, but even if you dont have one, keep reading - this is for you too...)

so, about a year ago, i started thinking that maybe i wanted an ipad... i'd spent many months making fun of what i felt was basically an overgrown phone that you couldnt use to make calls... (incidentally, my 3 year old nephew actually calls his dad's ipad 'the big phone') and didnt see why anyone would want one, but then, one day, it hit me.

i need this in the kitchen.

so when ipad 2 came out, i was right there on the pre-order bandwagon. I thought it would be great to have my recipes online instead of on random printed sheets all over the apartment.

and it was.

but, of course, i needed just a little more... So i went searching.

and i found the Pepperplate app. a way to store recipes and turn them into menu plans? score. exactly what i needed.

and, as it turns out, a lot more...

see, they have a website too (told you this wasnt all ipad love) and its amazing. AMAZING.

Between the site and the app, you can do a million things...

import recipes directly from supported sites
use the bookmarklet on your browser to do a simple copy/paste of recipes from unsupported sites
create manual recipes
edit recipes for your modifications, no matter their origin
menu plan
create shopping lists, customized for your grocery store
keep your ipad awake while cooking in the app
share your recipes with others and allow them to import those recipes into their own pepperplate accounts.

and, oh yeah, its FREE.

So the other day i started thinking - how do i use this on Kitchen Hell? So i tweeted the lovely @pepperplateapp people and asked - is there a way to create and share these links? and within moments, they got back to me with the details.

Therefore, from now on, any time i post a recipe, there will be a Pepperplate link under the title/creator - but before the ingredients - which will allow you to import that recipe into your own account.

(it also creates a clean print if you don't want to use an online version of said recipe)

I'll be going through the archives and adding links to old posts, but if you see any you want converted sooner rather than later, just drop me a line (or use the bookmarklet).

I hope you love Pepperplate as much as I do. And no, this was NOT a paid or requested endorsement - i really, truly just think this site/app are that useful that i wanted to share :)

Broccoli Mac & Cheese

2011-10-07T13:08:00.000-04:00

When the weather starts to cool off, everyone's thoughts (mine included) turn to apples and pumpkin and maple syrup. However, when mother nature decided to skip the whole cooling off period a week or so ago and go straight to RAINY & COLD, I couldn't help but skip the normal cravings and move straight to comfort food.

Most people will agree that there really is no better comfort food than mac & cheese but for those who arent looking to fatten up for their winter hibernation, the comfort we seek in mac & cheese can quickly turn to distress when trying to get dressed in the morning and finding out that none of your clothes fit anymore because you've been eating a little too much comfort...

This leaves you with a dilemma - do i stop eating the warm comforting hug that is mac & cheese and keep my slammin' body or do i eat all the comfort and embrace my fatness?

I'm here to give you a 3rd option - do both. and do it without sacrificing the stuff that makes mac & cheese the yummy goodness that it is...

Now, this recipe makes me feel a little bit like a mom who's trying to sneak vegetables into her kid's meal but really, the broccoli is a bonus, not a secret we're hiding under a layer of cheese (though that's how my mom got me to eat it as a kid...) and actually adds to the dish.

And you don't have to be on a diet to like it. It doesn't taste like diet food! I promise you, this mac and cheese tastes just as good as many other versions out there. The bonus is that the vegetables are already built in, so you don't feel like you have to make a side in order to have a complete meal.

It's a pretty versatile dish. While the recipe below uses high-fiber pasta and reduced fat cheese, that's not really the calorie-cutting key - its much more about the fact that there is equal weight of pasta and vegetable soaking up all of that cheesiness. I highly recommend playing around with it and coming up with the version you like best. I'm already planning its successor as we speak ;)

Broccoli Mac & Cheese

courtesy of skinnytaste.com, with modifications by me
Click here to import to Pepperplate.com

12 oz high fiber pasta (we used Barilla Plus elbows)
12 oz fresh broccoli florets, any large pieces roughly chopped

2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup diced onion
1 tbsp minced garlic (about 2 cloves if you aren't cheating and using the pre-minced stuff)

1/4 cup flour

1 cup vegetable broth

2 cups 1% milk
1 tbsp garlic chili cholula sauce

8 oz (2 cups) shredded reduced fat mexican cheese blend
salt and fresh pepper to taste

1/8 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup bread crumbs

***

Lightly grease a large casserole dish and set aside

Preheat oven to 375°

Prepare pasta in accordance with package directions for al dente pasta. Include the broccoli in the water with the pasta for about 7 minutes (this was al dente cooking time for our pasta, so everything went in together. If you are using a pasta with a longer cooking time, just throw the broccoli in when there is 7 minutes left...)

While pasta & broccoli are cooking, heat 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add onion & garlic and cook for about 2 minutes to soften.

Lower heat to medium-low and whisk in flour. It will clump and get dry - dont panic. Keep whisking for a minute or two until it is all incorporated and the mess looks golden.

Add broth, milk and cholula, whisking to incorporate. Raise heat to medium-high and heat, whisking often, until mixture is bubbling and gets thick. (This will take anywhere from about 5 - 10 minutes, depending on your definition of medium-high)

Remove from heat and stir in cheese, in batches, until it has melted and is well-incorporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the pasta & broccoli into the cheese sauce and mix well to combine.

Pour the whole thing into your prepared baking dish. Top with parmesan and then breadcrumbs.

Bake ~ 20 minutes and then turn oven up to 500° and bake for an additional 3 minutes to get the top a bit golden and crispy.

Allow to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Grandma P's MandelBread

2011-10-05T10:35:00.001-04:00

We were not going to be able to celebrate Rosh Hashana with Jordan's family this year, but i knew it was important to him that we do something to mark the holiday. Because Hallmark really doesnt have a 'high holidays' line in their stores, and no mythical characters show up with presents or chocolate, the only marker i was left with was food. (oh, darn.) So I went on an elaborate recipe search all over the internets trying to figure out what to make.

The interesting thing i learned about Rosh Hashana is that the general gist of it is to eat sweet things, as a wish for a sweet new year. This was a good thing to learn as holiday cooking is generally made more 'interesting' (and by interesting, i mean difficult) by my pescatarian lifestyle, but sweet is generally associated with desserts and such and desserts generally dont have meat in them. This i could do.

After a bit of digging, i came up with a basic menu, which included honey cake. When i ran it past Jordan, he was like, 'wtf is honey cake?' and i was like, 'its only what you are supposed to eat on rosh hashana, duh...' and he was all 'if you say so...' So then we had one of those super-fun discussions that go 'ok if you dont want honey cake, what do you want?' 'i dont know... no, its fine, i've just never had it before' at which point i declared myself more jewish than him - which went over about as well as you can imagine...

so in the interest of saving the holiday (and maybe my marriage), i did more research. and in that research, i saw that some people were making apple cake or mandelbread for dessert... Now, i didnt know what mandelbread was, but when i mentioned it to Jordan, he was all 'i've been craving that!' and just like that, the world was now right in jordan's eyes. so we called up his mom (ok, texted) and asked for his grandmother's recipe.*

Turns out mandelbread is basically biscotti. Except not always baked the second time the way biscotti is - and never baked the second time by Jordan's family.

Now, you may wonder why I'm posting this now, after Rosh Hashana. You may be saying 'um, maybe i could have used this if you'd only TOLD ME SOONER...' well, Yom Kippur is this weekend and i'm pretty sure that this mandelbread would be a welcome addition to ANY break fast table...

*turns out that Grandma P used Mom S's recipe - something Jordan only learned a couple of days ago... but i like the title Grandma P's, so i'm going to take that liberty, ok?

Grandma P's MandelBread
courtesy of Mom S.
click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

This is the full recipe. We actually cut it down and only made 1/3 of the recipe (therefore one loaf) because there are only two of us and we're already fat enough...

1/3 c butter
1 c sugar
3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla
1 drop lemon juice
2 1/2 c flour

2 tsp bsking powder
1 bag chocoloate chips

sugar & cinnamon for top

***

Preheat oven to 350°

Prepare a cookie sheet with a piece of parchment.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and the sugar.

Add the eggs 1 at a time and mix well after each.

Add the vanilla, lemon and mix well.

Combine the flour and the baking powder in a separate bowl and add the flour mixture in batches, mixing well after each addition. (I was able to keep using the electric mixer the whole time but it does get sticky at the end...)

Add the chocolate chips and mix to combine.

Flour your hands well and divide the very wet, very sticky dough into 3 pieces. Shape each piece into a narrow loaf and place on the parchment.

Sprinkle each loaf with cinnamon and sugar.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Allow to cool a bit and then slice as you would biscotti and serve.

Note: Its a dry 'cake' - i'm told its best dipped in either milk or coffee, but i liked it just fine plain :)

Halibut with Asparagus in Brown Butter Balsamic Vinaigrette

2011-09-07T12:35:00.001-04:00

I've been holding on to this one for a while, trying to think of a little story to tell with it. So I hopped over to the Top Chef page, hoping for some inspiration. and when i went to look at the original recipe, i realized that maybe now is when we should talk photography...

Why now? Well, because for one of the first times in my life, i think my picture is better than the supposed professional one...

About a year ago, Jordan and i decided to 'pre-spend' some wedding gifts and buy ourselves a fancy new camera... Jordan wanted it for our honeymoon, I mostly just wanted it for this blog... We wavered back and forth between different cameras, eventually ending on the Nikon D5000. And, of course, it showed up and we both said "well now what?"

Neither of us had a clue what to do with the thing and sure, we took it to paris and played with it and have thousands of pictures to show for it, but we still didnt really understand it. At all.

So for Jordan's birthday, i bought him a class on how to use that camera - Take Your Camera Off Program Mode, Part I with Okello Dunkley. I sent him with very specific instructions... find out how to take pictures of food and also how to make a cool picture with an out-of-focus background...

And that Jordan, he's a keeper - he came back with both pieces of information... Since we are talking food here, lets focus on that (though, turns out the info was largely the same) He said we needed to spend $ and get a Nikon 50mm lens, use our tripod and open the aperture way up to allow the background to 'fade away'... While i dont think i can explain the science of it, i can tell you that the good pictures you've occasionally* seen around here recently are a result of what he learned. Birthday present SUCCESS!

This halibut might be my most beautiful example of those lessons... the original picture just isnt so pretty and i dont know that it ever would have piqued my curiosity... Our picture? I think it makes the halibut and asparagus both look yummy and intriguing...

Something food-related worth noting - this was our first successful balsamic reduction. Both Jordan and I have tried in the past and both of us have failed... Traci used this for a quickfire challenge - explain how to cook something without seeing the other person - because it was simple and, by her accounts, one of the first sauces she teaches to anyone who comes to work for her... I figured if she could explain it through a wall and taught it to everyone who walked through her kitchen doors, that maybe it would even be Kristen & Jordan-proof... and it was - and if we could make it, i think its safe to say that pretty much anyone can!

*sadly i'm sometimes too lazy to get out the good camera and tripod and well, then you get the regular old boring ugly pictures... so sorry...

Halibut with Asparagus in Brown Butter Balsamic Vinaigrette

courtesy of Traci Des Jardin on Top Chef Masters
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

1-2 tbsp olive oil
8 spears of asparagus

2 halibut filets, skin removed

~2 tbsp butter
4 shallots, minced
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper, to taste
1/4 c fresh parsley, chopped

***

Heat ~ 1tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat and saute asparagus for 3-5 minutes, depending on thickness of asparagus - should still be a bit crisp. Set aside

Add a bit more olive oil to the pan, give it a minute to come up to temperature and saute the fish for a couple of minutes on each side until cooked through. (Traci said 1.5 mins per side, but i think it took us a bit longer...) Set aside.

Remove pan from heat. Lower heat to medium-low. Add butter to the pan & return it to the heat. Allow it to brown. If you have never browned butter before the basic gist is this: let it melt and let it sit in the pan. dont stir it. it will start to foam up. this is a good thing. Once that happens, start swirling the pan or stirring. this will cause the foam to 'collapse' and little tiny brown bits will float to the bottom of the pan. this will be wildly difficult to see if you are using a non-stick pan, so you'll have to rely on the foaming and the scent, which will be slightly nutty. Just as the butter has begun to brown, add the shallots and allow them to soften a bit - about 3 minutes.

Raise heat slightly and add in the balsamic. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Add a bit of water (start with a tablespoon or two) and whisk to emulsify. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, in accordance with your personal taste (we like both!). Add parsley and stir to incorporate. Allow to cook for a few minutes. Sauce will begin to thicken (aka reduce). Once it has reduced a bit, remove from heat.

Place 4 stalks of asparagus on each plate, top with one piece of halibut and spoon the balsamic sauce over top and serve.

Strawberry-White Chocolate Snack Cakes

2011-09-02T13:27:00.000-04:00

I meant to post these ages ago... While what i thought were the last strawberries were kicking around the greenmarket...

However, during my last trip there, i noticed something strange - a lot of people still had strawberries... strange but true. Therefore, rather than save this for next summer, i'm sharing it now, at the end of this summer...
I suspect you could make these with any kind of berries, so while the it may be late in the season for strawberries, i'm still recommending you find a way to make these... because summer's nearly over and big chunky sweaters are all the rage for fall (so say the fashion blogs) and whats better for hiding a few extra lbs than big chunky sweaters?

So even if you think that you detest white chocolate, do yourself and those around you a favor and make these anyway.

Thank me later.

Strawberry-White Chocolate Snack Cakes
courtesy of Cake Keeper Cakes, via All that's left are the crumbs, with modifications by me

1 egg
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
2 tsp vanilla extract

1.5 c all purpose flour, divided
1.5 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

6 tbsp (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c sugar

8 oz strawberries, stemmed and sliced
3/4 c white chocolate chips

***

Heat the oven to 350°F.

Prepare a regular-sized muffin tin (i used cupcake liners...)

Combine the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric beater until fluffy.

Combine the egg, egg yolk, sour cream, lemon zest and vanilla in a separate bowl

Combined 1.25 cups of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.

With the mixer on medium-low speed, pour the egg mixture into the butter/sugar bowl in a slow stream and beat together until combined.

Then, turn the mixer down to low speed and add the flour mixture, a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all of the flour has been added, mix for 30 seconds on medium.

Combine the strawberries and remaining 1/4 c flour in a bowl and toss to coat. Add white chips in and toss again.

Gently fold the berries and chocolate into the batter.

divide batter between 12 muffin cups.

bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, ~22 - 25 minutes.

Allow to cool some before eating.

New York Hurricane

2011-08-28T15:34:00.002-04:00

In one week, New York City would see an earthquake and a hurricane.

say what?

One cant prepare for an unusual earthquake, but as a fan of all things New Orleans, I couldnt let a hurricane (the storm) pass without making hurricanes (the drink) at home. While others were preparing with milk and water and bread, i wanted to make sure i had the necessary ingredients for this most appropriate drink.

My version isnt all that different from the standard (i passed over a few of the versions i found online as they sounded just too teeth-rottingly sweet - something i have found true of the version served by Pat O's in NOLA) save for the fact that i had to make a small substitution of mango-passion fruit juice for the straight-up passion fruit due to a mixup which can be attributed to the mass confusion caused by the frantic shoppers of fairway when it was announced that fairway would be closing at 10am - 13 minutes from when the announcement was made...

In my quest to perfect the New York Hurricane, I ended up making 3 versions of this drink last night - all in the name of getting it just right for you.

Yeah, thats why i made 3. no, really, it is. stop laughing! what kind of drunk do you think i am?

ok, fine. you are right. but my drunkardness is your gain, i swear.

New York Hurricane
adapted from about.com

2 oz light rum
2 oz dark rum
2 oz mango-passion fruit juice
1.5 oz orange juice
1 tbsp grenadine
1 tbsp simple syrup
juice from one lime
maraschino cherry (optional)

***

Place all ingredients, except the cherry, in a cocktail shaker and shake with 2-3 ice cubes to combine & chill

Serve in fun cocktail glass and throw a maraschino cherry in for good measure. (cherry optional, but recommended)

Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna

2011-08-04T13:05:00.000-04:00

what a shock, more mexican...

actually, please be impressed... the glut of mexican food means we are, gasp, using up ingredients!!! the idea for mexican lasagna came from a random comment on another blog regarding some sort of mexican casserole that her husband was going to eat while she juice fasted... i read that one morning and thought - ooh - we have like, 3/4 of a bag of tortillas! i can use them up! woo hoo!

of course i had to complicate things - combining 3 recipes into one which, in the end, didnt resemble any one of them all that closely - but in the end, worth it...

also? my first time working with TVP. super easy, super cheap. If you are sitting there going 'what the hell is TVP?', its ok, you could certainly make this with ground meat or more beans instead...

However, there is one MAJOR problem with this recipe...

its UGLY.

I know there is nothing appetizing about this picture - i'm fairly embarrassed to even be posting it because its SO ugly... but it was either deal with the ugliness or not post it at all, and i liked this enough that my need to share outweighed said embarrassment. So, ignore the picture and take my word for it... its good. it was actually so good that we ate the leftovers too (2.5 mins in the microwave was perfect) - which is something we so very rarely do - and honestly, the reheated version may have even surpassed the just-out-of-the-oven experience...

and, wait for it, this means we actually got 3 meals out of that one bag of tortillas.
watch out world, first using up tortillas, next extreme couponing! woo!

Vegetarian Mexican Lasagna
courtesy of me - inspired by Funkinutt McFly's Vegan Food blog, See Jen Cook, and Rachel Ray

for the seasoned TVP: courtesy of Funkinutt with minor modifications:
(note: we only used about 2/3 of this in our lasagna)
1.5 c textured vegetable protein
2 dried new mexico chilis
4-5 cloves garlic
1/4 of a vidallia onion
1 3/4 c water, divided

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Tabasco
juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 3/4 c water, divided

Heat olive oil in sauce pan over medium-high heat.

Remove stems from chili peppers and then put peppers, garlic, onion and 1/4 c water into food processor and process until finely chopped.

Add chopped chili mixture to hot oil and mix around. Add remaining ingredients to pan and cook over high heat for 2 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium and cook for another 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Set aside.

For remaining layers:
1 c cilantro
4 scallions, light green parts only
~5 c fresh baby spinach

corn kernels from 2 ears of corn
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

6-7 6-in flour tortillas

1.5 cans diced fire roasted tomatoes

2 c shredded mexican cheese blend

salt & pepper to taste

***

Preheat oven to 425°
lightly grease bottom of casserole dish with olive oil and set aside

combine cilantro, scallions & spinach in a food processor and process until almost pesto-like (you will probably have to add the spinach in batches). Add a bit of salt & pepper if desired and set aside.

combine corn and black beans and set aside.

cut tortillas into strips.

layer tortilla strips in the bottom of the casserole, just slightly overlapping.
layer some of the seasoned TVP in
toss on some of the black beans & corn
add a layer of tomatoes, with their juices
add a layer of cilantro/spinach mix
add a layer of shredded cheese
place another layer of tortilla strips on top & push down slightly.

Starting with seasoned TVP, repeat all layers, being sure to leave a little bit of the spinach mixture and cheese for the top.

At this point, you should have a top layer of tortilla strips. Spoon remaining spinach mixture over top and spread so that all tortilla is 'wet'. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top.

Cover and bake for 25 mins.

After 25 mins, remove cover and bake additional 20 minutes.

Allow to cool 5 or so minutes. Cut into 6 pieces and serve with sour cream and hot sauce (both optional)

Crispy Black Bean Tacos

2011-07-15T13:40:00.000-04:00

I swear, i was born in the wrong country... i think canadians are far more interesting than americans and all i eat is mexican food...

maybe its good that i was born half-way in between the two?

Regardless, its summer and for me, summer means a lot of things... but for purposes of this blog? it means mexican food. it means how many different ways can i make tacos...

I saw this recipe posted over on tumblr (its like twitter, but bigger...) and thought it looked interesting, and then someone else i follow on tumblr went ahead and made it like, 4 hours later... and a girl can only take so much peer pressure before she gives in, you know...

We served it with some kicked up rice and some cold beer. i recommend you do the same...

Crispy Black Bean Tacos

courtesy of Bon Appetit with modifications by me

1 15-ounce can reduced sodium black beans, drained & rinsed
1/2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp olive oil
juice from one lime

1/2 serrano pepper, minced
2 c coleslaw mix (no dressing, just the cabbage/carrots/etc. You can buy it bagged...)
2 green onions, very bottom and dark green portions discarded, center sliced into small discs
1/3 c chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 avocado, diced

salt & pepper (to taste)

1 tbsp olive oil
6 corn tortillas

1/3 cup crumbled cotija cheese

hot sauce of your choice (chipotle works quite well)

***

In a small bowl, mash beans and cumin until beans are mostly mashed but still have some definable beans

In a medium bowl, mix 2 tsp olive oil, lime juice and serrano pepper together. Then add coleslaw mix, green onion, cilantro and avocado and toss to coat. Salt & pepper to taste.

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil on a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Fit as many tortillas as you can on. Spoon approximately 1/6 of the bean mixture onto each, keeping it to one side and not too close to the edges. (it won't seem like enough, but this allows for more room for the slaw & cheese...) Allow to cook for a minute.

While they are still on the skillet, carefully fold tortillas in half. Do not press down too hard, but make sure they are folded enough to stay folded. Allow to cook on each side for a minute or two, until golden brown.

Remove from skillet and place on a paper towel to soak up any excess oil.

Top each with a generous amount of slaw and cotija - more than you see in the picture - after taking a few bites we realized we'd been skimpy on both - and top with hot sauce before serving...

Scape & Squash Frittata

2011-06-22T16:30:00.002-04:00

You know what's exciting? When you realize you now have the tools needed make something you never could before...

I've looked at frittata recipes for years. considered how versatile they were. contemplated flavors. but until recently, never made one because i didnt own an oven-proof pan.

sad, isnt it?

However, thanks to the miracle that is bridal registries & bridal showers and incredibly generous friends & family, we can now make all sorts of things!

Waffles? Check!

Frittata?

Check!

There isnt anything magical about this particular frittata - you can really use just about anything in a frittata that you would in an omelette. For me, the magic was realizing that i finally owned the tools needed to make it... and that was magic enough :)

Scape & Squash Frittata
courtesy of me

1 tbsp butter
6 - 7 garlic scapes, chopped into 1" segments
1 globe squash (about the size of a baseball) cut into 1/2" by 1" segments

7 eggs
~ 2 oz goat cheese, cut into small pieces

salt & pepper

***

Preheat oven to 350°

Saute scapes in butter over medium-high heat in an oven-proof 10" skillet or omelette pan until they soften and maybe get a tiny bit golden on the edges, ~ 5 minutes. Add a bit of salt & pepper, if desired.
Once they have softened, throw the squash in with them for a minute or two, just to soften it up a little bit.

Meanwhile, whisk eggs in a separate bowl. Once eggs are well mixed, gently stir in goat cheese bits.

Once the squash is ready, pour egg mixture over top of the scapes & squash. Top with salt & pepper, if desired.

Lower heat to medium and allow to cook, undisturbed, for about 2 - 3 minutes, or until the edges of the egg appear to be setting up.

Place skillet in the oven and allow to bake for ~10-12 minutes, until egg appears to be cooked nearly all the way.

Turn oven on to broil and place pan directly under broiler for about 1 minute, or until the top of the fritatta gets just a bit golden-brown.

Remove from oven, allow to sit for a minute or two before serving.

Waffles with Strawberry Conserve

2011-06-20T13:14:00.000-04:00

This year we decided to skip a CSA share in favor of spending more time/money at the greenmarkets and picking and choosing our produce. After 3 years as an active CSA member, this was a hard decision, but in the end, it really seemed like greenmarketing (yes, i just made that word up. feel free to use it :) ) would better suit our lifestyle, plus, i wanted a chance to try out other farms & other products, something that the effort of using up our CSA share often prevented me from doing in the past.

In addition to picking up squash and greens and bread and even local beer, we've been very interested in seasonal fruit. and right now, thats strawberries. The greenmarket strawberries are better than anything you'll get in your local grocery store - they dont hold a candle, size-wise - but when it comes to flavor, they really cant be beat. That little bit of knowledge makes them hard to pass up.

However, we're still us - meaning we still overbuy and underuse. So when it rolled around to Friday and i realized that last weekend's strawberries were still in the fridge, i was kinda mad at myself... how could we let those beauties go to waste? Luckily, we have the crappiest refrigerator on earth - it near-freezes everything on the top shelf, while the rest is the correct temperature. When it comes to forgotten foods, this can be a total blessing, as often things are preserved beyond their normal life. So when i finally pulled out those remaining strawberries, they were a little bit past their prime, but nowhere near the mess they should have been, and the first thing that came to my mind was strawberry conserve.

I dont really know what the technical definition of a conserve is, but whatever, this stuff is REALLY good... a couple of hours of passive time and a few minutes of active time yielded some of the best strawberry sauce i've ever had... Of course, once you have a container of yummy strawberry stuff, you need something to eat it with (as eating it with a spoon, while yummy, isnt exactly advisable...) so I immediately declared there would be waffles the next morning.

We had it for breakfast, but its sweet enough that you could certainly make a pretty excellent dessert - especially with a scoop of vanilla ice cream - out of it... Either way, you just need to make it soon.

Waffles with Strawberry Conserve
courtesy of Bon Appetit and Food.com with minor modification by me

For the conserve:
1.5 c strawberries, hulled & cut in half
1/4 c sugar
the peel of 1/4 of a lemon - including the pith (white part)

***

Place all ingredients in a saucepan, stir to combine and cover.
Let sit for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Strawberries will release juices and the sugar will melt into the juices.

Turn the stove on to medium and simmer for about 3 - 4 minutes. Once berries have softened, remove them with a slotted spoon and place in a jar.

Continue to simmer the juice for 2 - 3 minutes, until it begins to thicken up a bit. Remove from heat, remove lemon peel and pour the syrupy juice over the berries.

Seal the jar and refrigerate.

For the waffles:
1 1/3 c all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
2 eggs, separated
1/2 c butter (1 stick), melted
1 3/4 c skim milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

***

Combine flour, baking powder, salt & sugar in a bowl and whisk to combine.

Add the egg yolks, melted butter, skim milk & vanilla to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until they form soft peaks.

Gently fold egg whites into the rest of the batter.

Follow the instructions for your waffle iron to cook. As for how much batter to use: the instructions to our waffle iron indicated 2 different amounts, one for a thinner batter and one for a thicker batter. I found that an amount right in the middle of these two yielded the best results. I also found that setting the browning level just slightly above average worked best.

***

Spoon conserve over warm waffles. Eat as is or add powdered sugar, bananas (shown above), ice cream, whipped cream or any combination of the above if you are feeling particularly decadent.

Open-Faced Goat Cheese & Avocado Sandwich

2011-06-10T13:23:00.001-04:00

so, i'm totally obsessed with top chef masters this go around... (season 3). as much as i like to cook, i've never been a huge fan of any of the cooking shows until this one, but when they announced that Floyd Cardoz, former chef of Tabla - one of my all time favorite restaurants - would be a contestant, i decided to tune in.

As we've watched this season (because dont think i've allowed jordan to escape this one), one of our favorite topics is who's restaurants we want to visit... I've been to Suvir's restaurant, Devi, but Jordan hasnt, so that's high on our list for this summer... Floyd is set to open a new restaurant in the coming months and, of course, we'll be vying for reservations the minute it opens...

In addition to my New York Indians, Traci & Mary Sue were always high on my list. Given that they round out the top 3 with Floyd, i decided to go looking and see just how long of a flight we'd need to take to get to their restaurants... turns out its a pretty long one since they are both in CA... however, my search for more info on their whereabouts landed me one of the most useful pieces of information ever...

all of the top chef recipes are available on the website.

now, i'm sure this isnt news to you, but like i said, i havent been watching this show! I had NO IDEA! Amazing!!!

so, just as i was learning this, it was about 98° outside... and the thought of cooking dinner was pretty awful because, oven, EW... however, i quickly remembered the avocado/goat cheese sandwich Mary Sue had made during the quickfire challenge just a couple of episodes ago and thought - ooh... that.

So i went on my search and lo and behold, there it was... just begging for me to recreate it... given my recent obsession with avocado (seriously, for the past 2 months, i've craved avocado every single day...) i was powerless to resist.

we did have to make one obvious tweak to it, given that i dont eat bacon, and i do suspect that real bacon would make it even better for those so inclined to eating that particular product, but even without it, this open-faced sandwich is a winner in my book - even if the microwaved version of it was a big loser on the show...

Open-Faced Goat Cheese & Avocado Sandwich
courtesy of Mary Sue Milliken, via Top Chef Masters with minor modifications by me

Note: I've listed the sandwich ingredients first, but i would suggest making the dressing first so it has some time to sit so the flavors can meld

For the sandwich:
2 pieces of baguette, approximately 6 to 8 inches long each, sliced in half

1 avocado, seed and peel removed
2 oz soft goat cheese
1/4th of a lemon, juiced (prob about 1 tbsp?)
4-5 dashes garlic chili cholula
~ 1/4 tsp black pepper (freshly ground is best)

sea salt

1/2 of an heirloom tomato, sliced paper-thin

For the dressing:
(this makes way more than you will probably use on the sandwiches - dont feel compelled to use it all or you'll drown your other ingredients and end up with soggy bread...)

1 tbsp minced shallot

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tbsp bacos (meat eaters, feel free to use real bacon instead...)

salt & pepper (a few turns of the grinder of each seemed to work for us)

***

Prepare the dressing - mix all dressing ingredients together in a bowl, jar, emulsifier - whatever you want - and mix well/shake/whatever to combine. Set aside.

Turn oven on to broil

Toast baguettes, cut side up, for 1 - 2 minutes under the broiler, so the edges get a bit golden and the bread itself is a little toasty.

Mash the avocado, goat cheese, lemon juice, cholula, and pepper together in a bowl. The goal is to get a cohesive mixture that is fairly smooth with a few lumps remaining (i had to use a wooden spoon to really break my avocado apart as it was just slightly under-ripe and then mashed the rest up with a fork)

Taste and season with additional black pepper and a little sea salt, if desired. (note - it will taste a little bland at this point. dont worry. have faith.)

Spread mixture on the toasted baguette pieces and place back in the broiler for a minute or so to warm it up.

Remove from the broiler and top with thin slices of tomato

drizzle each piece with some dressing and serve immediately.

Remoulade

2011-05-24T12:29:00.001-04:00

So, it turns out you dont have to make your own crabcakes to get some really good ones...

One of the greatest things about where we live is Fairway (i'm sure i've said it many times before, but its really true) and one of the hardest parts about one day leaving where we live will be the lack of Fairway...

and one of the best parts of fairway is their seafood counter...

Not only do they have great fresh seafood, they also have a lot of pre-cooked stuff... We'd noticed the crab cakes one day and thought that we might try them one night when we were too lazy to make our own...

Generally, i'd top my crab cakes with cocktail sauce or tartar sauce, but a night when we were being to lazy to actually do anything more than heat our dinner up seemed like a good night to experiment with toppings - especially one that, while it has a long list of ingredients, requires VERY little actual work...

I'm not sure if this qualifies as a traditional remoulade, but whatever it is, it definitely adds a little something that makes your supermarket prepared dinner seem just a little fancier...

Remoulade
courtesy of me

3/4 c light mayo
2 tsp dijon mustard
1.5 tsp whole-grain mustard
1.5 tsp ketchup
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp garlic cholulah (or other hot sauce of your choosing)
1 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves (or 1 tsp dried)
1 scallion - most of the white and the light green parts
2 tbsp spanish onion
1/2 tbsp horseradish
2 tsp capers
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp chili powder
salt & pepper to taste

***

Place all ingredients in a mini-chopper (or blender or small food processor) and process until well combined and mostly smooth.

If possible, chill before serving to allow flavors to meld.

"Real" Fettuccine Alfredo

2011-05-20T12:19:00.001-04:00

According to Mario Batali, us americans have totally bastardized Fettuccine Alfredo...

On May 17, he was on the Today Show - at 8:39am to be exact - making what he calls the real, original version of fettuccine alfredo. Live, on TV, with no 'so this is what it will look like in 10 minutes' or any of that - this whole thing could be made live on tv in real time, save for the prepping of ingredients and the boiling of water...

(incidentally, if i was a good kid, i would have already been out the front door on my way to work and would have missed this. bonuses like this dont do much to discourage my bad-kid behaviour...)

Now, as someone who really, really likes that bastardized american version of fettuccine alfredo, i wasnt so sure what i thought of this - but both Jordan and I thought it was as least worth a shot... as we always say, whats the worst? - we order Big Nicks...

We did decide that it might be better with some garlic - most things are - but aside from that, pretty much followed mario's recipe exactly (well, the one he did on the show - the written recipe leaves a step or two out...)

Serve it with a salad, crusty bread and a little white wine and you've got a perfect low on time/high on taste midweek meal...

"Real" Fettuccine Alfredo
courtesy of Mario Batali on the Today Show with minor modifications by us

1/2 pound fresh spinach fettuccine (boxed would be fine as well)
3.5 tablespoons (scant ½ stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound medium asparagus, tough ends snapped off (yields about 1/3 lb of usable asparagus)
¼ c freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

***

Using a mandoline (or other vegetable slicer, or a vegetable peeler), thinly shave the stalk of your asparagus into little discs. Leave the 'trees' whole.

Bring 2-3 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot, and add 1 tablespoons salt.

Cook the fettuccine in the boiling water, just slightly shorter than the package directions, as it will cook a little bit with the sauce. Drain, reserving about 1/8 cup of the pasta water, and set aside.

In a large saute pan, heat the butter over medium heat until melted. Add the garlic and allow to sauté for a minute or so, then add the asparagus. Toss to coat & allow to cook a couple of minutes.

Add the reserved pasta water & stir to combine.

Add pasta to the saute pan & toss until the pasta is coated with the butter mix.

Allow to cook about 30 seconds, then add the cheese and toss well.

Once cheese has mostly melted in, remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper (to taste) and serve immediately.

The Best Quinoa EVER

2011-05-17T13:39:00.001-04:00

Throw away all of your other savory quinoa recipes - this is the last one you will ever need.

I'm serious.

Some people believe that food blogs should only be vehicles for New!Original!Wow! but anyone who's read this blog for any amount of time knows i dont feel that way... This blog is a way for me to chronicle my favorites - whether I created or just replicated - and share them with others. This is pretty close to a pure replication, from one of our favorite sources, Mark Bittman.

Since making it the first time, its become the default go-to recipe when we want a grain-y side and there isnt an otherwise-obvious answer (ie mexican food gets mexican rice)... between the health benefits of quinoa and the overall yumminess of this recipe, i cant see any reason for it to lose its place at the top any time soon...

The Best Savory Quinoa EVER
courtesy of Mark Bittman - How to Cook Everything (a variation on the Roasted Corn Quinoa) with minor revisions by Jordan

2 tbsp olive oil

2 shallots, minced
salt & pepper

3/4 c quinoa - rinsed and drained

1.5 c hot water with 1 large vegetable bouillon cube (the kind that makes 2 cups of stock) dissolved in it*

parsley (dried or fresh will do)

***

Place oil in skillet/saucepan (make sure it has a lid - you dont need it yet, but you will) over medium heat

Once oil is hot, add in the shallots and a little salt & pepper. Stir to coat and then allow to cook 3 - 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the shallots begin to brown.

Once the shallots have browned, add in the quinoa. Stir to coat with oil & to combine. Allow to sit until grains start popping/toasting. This will take about 5 minutes. You can stir a little, but not too much, during this time. Once the popping has begun (you'll see 'movement' among the grains) add in the broth (water/bouillion) and bring to a boil.

Stir and then cover and reduce heat to super-low so that the pot is just lightly simmering.

Allow to cook 15 minutes. (you may want to check on it after 10 minutes to be sure that its not dry. If it is, add another 1/4c of water and stir, reduce heat even further, and continue to cook)

Check after 15 minutes. If water is gone but grains are still too crunchy for your taste (quinoa generally will have a slight 'crunch' to it) add in more water, 1/4 c at a time, until it is cooked to your taste. If there is still water, continue to cook, checking every few minutes.

Once fully cooked, remove from the stove and add a few shakes of parsley (if dried or a small handful of chopped fresh) and a bit of additional pepper. For some reason, this last step REALLY makes a huge difference - prior to adding the parsley, it can seem too salty and a bit blah, but afterwards, its perfect. the parsley is truly more than just a garnish.

Stir and serve.

* you can obviously use 1.5 c of vegetable broth if you want. In a small manhattan kitchen, its just easier to keep bouillon on hand than it is to keep containers of broth...

Breakfast Tacos

2011-05-16T18:14:00.001-04:00

Cinco de mayo aside, i could eat mexican every day. Therefore, allowing leftover mexican ingredients to go to waste is pretty much sacrileg in my book.

Last weekend we found ourselves in need of breakfast. We've gotten into a horrible habit which is alternating between ordering from a local deli (egg and cheese on a roll with ketchup delivery - its supposed to be hangover food, not every single saturday food...) or going to the bagel shop... Its one of my least favorite of our recent bad habits and occasionally, i find myself motivated to do something about it. This was one of those times.

Armed with the cinco de mayo leftovers and some eggs, i knew just what to do...

Eat This Not That!/Men's Health recently published a list of the 8 foods you should eat every day. Black beans and tomatoes were both on the list and are both in this recipe (tomatoes via the salsa, but close enough). Had i read the list before i made the tacos, i would have also added some baby spinach - after the butter melted, but just before putting the eggs in - as it was also on the list.

Starting your morning with 3 of the 8 things you are supposed to eat every day? Total WIN, and not in the Charlie Sheen way...

Breakfast Tacos
courtesy of me

5 flour soft taco shells

butter
5 eggs, slightly beaten

1/4 - 1/3 c black beans
1/3 - 1/2 c shredded mexican cheese blend (any cheddar would do fine as well)
1/4 - 1/3 c salsa
~2 tbsp pickled jalapeños (optional, depending on your personal penchant for heat)

salt, pepper & hot sauce (all optional, all to taste)

***

Turn oven on to 200°
Put soft taco shells in the oven to warm up.

place small amount of butter in frying pan over med-low heat

once butter is melted, pour eggs in. Use a wooden spoon to mix them around - we're going for a scramble here...

Once eggs are about half-way cooked (remember the heat is low, so it will be a slower cook than you are normally used to), add in the black beans and cheese and mix around.

Once cheese is melty and eggs are cooked about 3/4 of the way, pour the salsa in. Mix again to combine.

Just as eggs are about finished, add the jalapeños. and mix one last time.

Allow eggs to finish cooking completely and then remove from heat.

Remove shells from the oven and divide egg mixture evenly between the shells. Top with salt, pepper and/or hot sauce depending on your preferences.

Fold each shell up, securing with a toothpick if you like yours wrap style...

Mexican Brown Rice

2011-05-06T12:59:00.001-04:00

You know how i was all 'new post! new post! new post!' and now its all radio silence?

its because i've seemingly forgotten how to cook... it appears that 2011 and kitchen concoctions dont mesh well for me.

lately, everything i make is a failure of some sort - even things i've made a million times before - even simple boring boxed pasta - i've lost the magic. and its really getting me down and making the idea of ordering in a lot more appealing...

while i try to figure out what the hell is going on, i will share this mexican rice with you... last night was cinco de mayo, so we opted for basic quesedillias, refried beans (hint: goya refried > amy's refried) and this rice.

Its not the most traditional of mexican rices - a bit more tomato and no peppers, but it was seriously the first thing we've made in a while that didnt make me apologize throughout the entire meal...

(oh yeah, and if jordan ever offers you a margarita? if you have anything to do the next day, run far, far away. 1.5 of his amazing margaritas has left me way HUNG OVER this morning...)

Mexican Brown Rice
courtesy of me

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 of a medium red onion, diced
1 1/2 cups brown basmati rice (i'm sure any brown rice would do - just be sure to adjust your cooking time accordingly)
3 cloves minced garlic
2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 can (14.5 oz) petite cut zesty tomatoes w/ liquid
~ 6 strands saffron

***

Heat olive oil in a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat.

Add the onion and saute for 3-4 minutes. Onion should be somewhat softened, but not at all browned.

Add dry rice & saffron and stir to combine so that rice is coated with oil and cook with the onions for about 5 minutes or until rice gets 'toasty' - color will change a little and you'll smell it.

Add in the garlic, stir well to combine & saute for one more minute.

Slowly add in broth, tomatoes & saffron threads. Stir to combine and bring to a boil. Allow to boil about 2 - 3 minutes and then turn the heat to super low and cover.

Let it simmer for ~45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Periodically check to make sure that there is still water in the pan (if your lid allows steam to escape, some of the liquid may evaporate before it can be absorbed). If it gets too close to dry and the rice is still crunchy, add ~1/3 c of water & continue to cook.

Once all of the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked the way you like it, fluff with a fork & serve.

Matzo Crack

2011-04-19T10:48:00.002-04:00

Years of growing up in a predominantly jewish town left me with all sorts of envy - how come we didnt have a menorah? how come we didnt have matzo in the house? how come my parents didnt know a place in the city that they drove 1.5 hours to just for bagels?

yeah, yeah, santa claus, easter bunny, italian pastry, blah blah blah.

However, one of the best parts of growing up in said environment and not being jewish is it meant i was able to selectively partake... so even though the girl who's name translates to 'follower of christ' probably didnt need to buy the matzo/butter for lunch during passover, the nice lunch ladies let me anyway... and in 9th grade home ec, they taught me how to make matzo brei... (more on that later this week, hopefully...)

it really was no wonder i ended up marrying a jew, is it? we now have all of the benefits of 2 religions! lasagne, bagels, pastry, matzo brei! (have i ever mentioned that my absolute favorite part of any holiday is food?)

anyway, enough about me and my envy - this is about what you are going to bring for seder dessert tonight... (or next year if you dont manage to catch this on April 19... or just eat whenever you want if you arent jewish but have distinct envy like i did...)

This matzo crack is so incredibly easy to make - I started on it at the same time jordan took the dog for her afternoon walk, and i was finished (save for the chilling) by the time he got back in...

There are a million ways to adapt this - a quick google search will tell you others have used almonds, coconut and a whole host of other things to top this off... we went for the standard presentation and while it would be fun to experiment a little, it really is quite amazing even in this, its simplest form...

Matzo Crack
adapted from of Marcy Goldman - A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking

4-5 unsalted matzos
2 sticks unsalted butter
1 c firmly packed light brown sugar
scant 1 c bittersweet chocolate chips
fleur de sel/sea salt

***

Preheat oven to 350°

Cover a baking sheet entirely with aluminum foil and then place a piece of parchment on top of the foil (helps with sticking. the internet says you could butter the foil instead but the parchment worked wonders...)

lay matzo out so that it covers the entire thing, breaking pieces up to ensure full coverage

place butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and turn heat up to medium. When butter is mostly melted, add in the brown sugar. stir, continuously, to incorporate. When mixture starts to bubble, start your timer. continue to stir mixture for about 3-4 minutes. at some point during that time, you will notice that the butter/sugar is starting to come together and the mixture is getting less liquid and more almost marshmallow-fluff-ish. this is a good thing. If you think its getting too hot, briefly pull off of the heat and then return it a few seconds later. (stir the whole time...)

remove from heat and pour over the matzo. using a rubber spatula, spread the mixture evenly over your matzo.

place the cookie sheet in the oven and set your timer for 13 minutes. After about 5, you will see that the mixture has started to bubble up. this is a good thing. check it every 3 minute or so to ensure that its not cooking too fast (getting darker brown would be a good indication)... I opened my oven a few times to let some heat escape and turned the tray around once. The minute you smell a hint of burning, remove the tray from the oven.

immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over the toffee and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

after 5 minutes, spread chocolate chips around with a rubber spatula until the entire tray is coated in a layer of chocolate.

sprinkle with fleur de sel/sea salt and place in the freezer. After about 15 minutes, remove and score into whatever size pieces you wish to have and return to the fridge (if you have plenty of time) or freezer (if you are making this 45 minutes before you are supposed to head across town...)

once fully cooled, break into pieces and enjoy.

Avocado-Pistachio Wrap

2011-04-01T08:43:00.011-04:00

This time of year, things get a little hectic... its stupid, really... I gave up my busy Jan-April job a couple of years ago, so this should be my slow time. However, that rational thinking has caused me to overextend myself in so many ways that Jan-April is nearly as bad as it used to be.

before someone throws something at me, i did say NEARLY...

Anyway, (tangent - google tells me i use the word AGO more than any other word on this blog. I'm completely and 100% shocked that its not ANYWAY...) busy nights lead to quick dinners thrown together... After the quesedillias, there were a few random things kicking around and i'm still trying really hard to cut down on my food waste, so i was all 'what can i make with that bit of goat cheese and those tortillas?' and i thought back to the little card that was floating around in my ~~bottomless pit~~ bag from my local Pret... It had instructions on how to construct their avocado-pine nut wrap and it was enough to get me started on my own avocado wrap.

Dont tell them, but i might like my version better...

Avocado-Pistachio Wrap
Inspired by Pret A Manger, courtesy of me

2 tbsp plain yogurt
2 tbsp low-fat mayo

2 whole grain tortillas

1 avocado, cut into slices
1/4 - 1/3 c goat cheese crumbles
1 c arugula
15 - 20 pistachios, shelled & chopped (yes, we have a slap chop. 2 in fact. we > you)

salt & pepper

***

mix the yogurt & mayo together and set aside

lay out the tortillas

place 1/2 of the avocado, then 1/2 of the goat cheese, then 1/2 of the arugula & you guessed it, 1/2 of the pistachios in each, mostly towards the center and one end... kind of like from the center of the clock down to 6 o'clock, if that makes sense...

salt & pepper to suit your personal tastes
(the average person enjoys 3 cranks of a pepper grinder. true story. learned it from a real-live bonafied professional chef)

Carefully fold both sides in and roll from the bottom*. Slice in half** and enjoy.

* If you are as talented as me, your sides wont stay rolled so tight, but i assure you, your wrap will taste just as good, regardless...
**slicing on an angle makes the first bite easier to take...

Spinach & Goat Cheese Quesadillas

2011-03-23T13:30:00.003-04:00

Remember those quesadillas from, oh, yesterday?

Well, Jordan's version of non-mexican quesadillas varied significantly from mine - the only thing they shared was goat cheese...

Sadly, this is a common occurrance in our apartment - two people who have strong opinions about pretty much everything means that we both want what we want... and while i am exploring all things mushrooms, he's pretty much the king of spinach...

The irony of this is that i'm pretty sure that, had we put some of the mushrooms and the spinach together, we would have ended up with our best version of non-mexican quesadillas...

Metaphor for marriage, people... metaphor for marriage.

thank god we have more tortillas ;)

Spinach & Goat Cheese Quesadillas
courtesy of the new york times with minor modifications by Jordan

~3 cups baby spinach, cleaned and still damp

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 package small corn tortillas

½ c goat cheese crumbles

Salt, black pepper & crushed red pepper, optional

***

Prepare spinach:

Heat up 1 tbsp olive oil over med heat and put minced garlic in. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes until garlic is fragrant.

Add spinach and cook 2 – 3 minutes until just wilted. Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare quesadillas:

Lightly oil a large, flat skillet, place it over medium-low heat and place two tortillas on it.

Add toppings to each, starting with spinach, then topping with goat cheese.

Add salt, black pepper or crushed red pepper, if desired.

Allow to heat up until goat cheese starts to get soft and maybe even a bit melty. Once it is, place another tortilla on top of each and lightly press down.

Allow to cook another minute or so and then carefully flip. Let the other side cook for a minute or two and then remove from skillet.

Allow to sit for a minute and then cut with a pizza cutter.

(makes 2 or 3 depending on the size of your shells)

Black Bean, Mushroom & Goat Cheese Quesadillas

2011-03-22T09:27:00.002-04:00

I once asked my friend Katie what kway-se-delia-s were.

I was about 23 at the time.

True story.

I might have been drunk. Or hungover. At least I hope I was one of the two because who the hell claims Mexican among their favorite cuisines and doesn’t know what a quesadilla is when they read the word on a menu? Despite having eaten them many, many times…

(why do I share these things???)

Anyway, ever since I had huevos rancheros at Almond last weekend, we’ve been talking Mexican food. And then Jordan saw some quesadilla recipes in the NY Times and who are we to ignore the universe when it points us to Mexican food?

Apparently, we’re someone, because our quesadillas were anything but Mexican. There are no jalepenos, no salsa, no avocado, no sour cream. Not even jack or cheddar… Nope. These quesadillas are in name only, simply because they are sandwiched between two tortillas… However, with less than 3 months to re-lose all of our post wedding weight gain (as we’ll be heading to the islands for someone else’s wedding and islands = beach = bathing suits = ‘oh crap maybe I shouldn’t have allowed myself to regain all the weight I’d lost’) they managed to satisfy the need for something vaguely mexican and do it in the healthiest way possible.

The version you see below also allowed me to experiment a little with one of my new favorite things, mushrooms. Because, oh, did you know? It turns out that I like mushrooms now. Hated them for about 34 years until some time in the last few months, and now, I’m somewhat obsessed. Turns out I really just don’t like button mushrooms… who knew? I’m still experimenting with the types I like best and how to prepare and use them and this was a great chance to do just that…

Black Bean, Mushroom & Goat Cheese Quesadillas
Courtesy of me

½ tbsp butter
½ tbsp olive oil

½ of a shallot, somewhere between diced and minced
1 c maitake mushrooms, roughly chopped
1/3 c red wine, divided

1 package whole grain tortilla shells

¼ c black beans, drained & rinsed
½ c goat cheese crumbles
Salt & black pepper, optional

***

Prepare mushrooms:
Heat olive oil & butter over medium heat. Add shallots and mushrooms. Stir to coat all with butter/oil. Add half of the red wine and allow to simmer until nearly all of the wine is cooked into the mushrooms. Add remaining wine and cook down more until mushrooms begin to crisp just a bit. When they do, remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare quesadillas:
Lightly oil a large, flat skillet, place it over medium-low heat and place one tortilla on it.

Add toppings, starting with black beans (lightly mash them down to help them ‘stick’) then mushrooms, then topped with goat cheese. Add salt & black pepper, if desired.

Allow to heat up until goat cheese starts to get soft and maybe even a bit melty. Once it is, place another tortillia on top and lightly press down.

Allow to cook another minute or so and then carefully flip. Let the other side cook for a minute or two and then remove from skillet.

Allow to sit for a minute and then cut with a pizza cutter.

(makes 1-2 depending on the size of your shells)

Irish Kiss Cookies

2011-03-17T12:25:00.001-04:00

This morning, Jordan informed me that he doesnt 'theme dress'... He nearly wore a green shirt to work today but then realized it was St Pats and changed into a purple one.

BAH HUMBUG.

I find it slightly ironic that a guy who loves Guinness and found his future wife (me) by searching the internet dating world for redheads would decline to openly participate in the holiday that celebrates both beer and those who gave us redheads, but i digress...

I'm making up for his non-participatory nature by wearing a green shirt, green eyeliner and giving you boozy green cookies.

Happy St Patrick's Day!!!

Irish Kiss Cookies

courtesy of The Runaway Spoon with modifications by me

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
½ cup sugar
½ cup light brown sugar

1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ c + 1 tbsp Bailey's Irish cream
green food coloring gel

32 Dark Hershey’s Kisses, unwrapped

Powdered Sugar

***

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Combine flour, baking soda & salt and set aside.

Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.

Add the egg and vanilla, beating until combined.

Add the Irish Cream, beating well.

Add half of the flour mixture & mix to combine. Add the remaining flour mixture & mix to combine.

Continue to mix while you add green food coloring until you get your desired shade of green.

Push a kiss into ~ 1 tsp of dough and form a ball around the kiss. Place on baking sheet, leaving 1.5 inches or more between each ball.

Bake ~9 minutes. Cookies will flatten some and the color will change slightly.

Cool on the cookie sheets for a minute or two, then carefully slide parchment paper onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

Dust with powdered sugar.

Lazy Lasagna

2011-03-15T00:30:00.003-04:00

This is one of those times where i'm going to go on record saying that its really easy to make something that other people find difficult...

That thing is lasagna. it seriously takes no brain power - just a bit of time. and one day, i'll even get around to blogging about how easy it is...

but today is not that day. because, ravioli lasagna? its even easier... like, i'm going to out on a limb and say that i think that, with a little help, even my 2.5 year old nephew could put this one together. (If i was in NC right now, i'd test it out, but i'm not so, um, sister, mom, dad? someone get on that. take pictures and video please because its going to be a legendary mess but i bet it will still taste good in the end...) which is why i've dubbed it lazy - because the amount of effort required is so minimal that even the least motivated version of yourself can pull this one off.

In fact, I'm pretty sure this is one of those dinners where preheating the oven takes longer than actually assembling the dish - perfect for a weeknight, a sunday night or really any other time you can think of...

Lazy Lasagna
courtesy of Real Simple - modified by me

1 tbsp olive oil

5 - 6 c fresh baby spinach*

~20 oz roasted garlic spaghetti sauce
2 packages large fresh ravioli - uncooked - (13 to 15 oz each package)
1.5 c shredded mozzarella
1/3 c of your favorite grated cheese - we used a combo of pecorino romano & parmesan

crushed red pepper, salt, black pepper (all optional depending on your taste and how spiced up your sauce already is)

***

Preheat oven to 350°

lightly grease 2.5 qt casserole dish if you are afraid of stickage. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat and add the spinach in. Stir around until just wilted and remove from heat. *

place ~ 1/3 of your tomato sauce in the bottom of the casserole dish

layer in half of your ravioli - make sure the bottoms of all of the ravioli are touching plenty of sauce (this is what allows them to cook in the oven)

top with all of your spinach

sprinkle with 1/2 of your grated cheese

sprinkle with 1/2 of your shredded mozzarella

place a few spoonfuls of sauce over the cheeses and spread as best as you can without making a mess of the cheese

sprinkle with crushed red pepper, salt & black pepper, if desired

layer in the rest of your ravioli

top with remaining tomato sauce. Again, make sure that all ravioli are well-coated with sauce and that there are no naked edges showing.

top with remaining grated cheese

top with remaining shredded cheese

cover (either with your fancy casserole cover or with tin foil) and bake ~ 25 minutes.

Remove cover and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes until the cheese gets a little bit bubbly and maybe even a bit brown around the edges

Allow to cool for 5 minutes & then cut as you would normal lasagna and serve.

Serves 3 - 4 for dinner, depending on what you serve it with ;)

*note: for the 2.5 year old making it version, feel free to use frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed out

Banana Nutella Bread

2011-03-07T17:40:00.000-05:00

the name sounds like it might be the greatest thing on earth, right? banana = good. nutella = good. banana/nutella? GOOD, right?

Well, let's just say i hope it is - I'm writing this as attempt #3 is finishing up in the oven...

Yes, you read that right - i've made this 3 times now and i'm only just blogging about it... but thats cause its ATTEMPT #3 - meaning the first two? not blog-worthy...

In an effort to make your attempts more successful than mine were, ill tell you what went wrong.

attempt #1 - i overmixed. Plain and simple. When directions tell you to mix until just combined - there's a reason for that... if you overmix the bread gets chewy and hard and neither of those in a good way. I may have also over-baked... (my coworkers ate it without complaint, but i dont think they're a picky bunch...)

attempt #2 - I underbaked. I was nervous of the over-baking, so i pulled it out early. and it was not right. i wont tell you what it looked like but suffice it to say, it didnt look like anything one would want to eat... (we managed to salvage a few ends that were, in fact, cooked but not enough to call it any sort of success...)

For attempt #3, i decided to scrap the original recipe. I'd been working from a recipe I'd found in a million places on the internet, but have traced back to vneck and a cardigan... but then i came across Mark Bittman's banana bread recipe and i thought - ooh, maybe i'll combine that with the nutella-ness of the other, dial back the amount of nutella (as i suspect that contributed to the gooey mess that was the second one) and i'm still hoping that is my winner...

if you see a pretty picture above, it means i won. If you see a pile of mess above, it means i lost. because the this is my third and final attempt and i'm blogging it either way. because if it didnt work this time, well, i give up...

Banana-Nutella Bread
inspired by a combination of Mark Bittman - How to Cook Everything and V-Neck and a Cardigan

2 c all purpose flour

1.5 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c brown sugar
1/4 c white sugar

3 - 4 small bananas, very ripe and mashed well (it was about 1 c of banana mash)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract

~ 1/3 c nutella (homemade or store-bought) (a)

***

preheat oven to 350°

generously grease loaf pan, set aside

mix flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside

cream butter and sugars until fluffy

add mashed banana, eggs & vanilla to butter mixture & mix until well combined

using nothing more than a spatula or wooden spoon, gently incorporate the flour mixture. DO NOT OVERMIX. its ok if there are lumps...

pour most of the batter into your greased loaf pan, reserving about 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup.

mix nutella and reserved batter until just combined.

pour nutella mixture over top of the loaf and use a spatula or a knife to swirl in. swirl well. make it count.

Bake 50 mins. If after 50 mins, it appears to still be underbaked (a knife will come out fairly clean when its baked) put back in the oven for another 10 minutes.
if its still underbaked, reduce oven temperature to 325° and bake in 5 minute increments until fully cooked.

remove from oven and allow to cool for ~ 15 minutes in its pan, then, remove from loaf pan and cool on a rack.

(a) I meant to do this with ~ 1/2 of a cup of nutella... but we'd been at the booze experiment all day and i guess my math skills were not so good...

Quick & Easy Personalized Pizza

2011-03-04T21:32:00.000-05:00

Lately, for some reason, dinner stresses me out. I dont know if its the whole 'getting married and being someone's wife' thing or if its just the 'not on a diet anymore (though i should be) so there's no excuse for less than amazing-tasting food' thing or if its the 'i want more to post on the blog' thing or my competitive nature which makes me want to outdo myself every time, but every time Jordan asks if i have any idea what i want for dinner, i get immediately stressed...

The other morning, on the way to work, we were talking about this and were talking about how a rotation of themes would help... for example, nearly every sunday, we have some sort of pasta. I grew up that way and Jordan is more than happy to play along and that makes sunday night dinner the least stressful one of the whole week - because at least there is always a starting point...

So we started brainstorming themes - things that, like pasta, could be as easy or as complex as you allow them to be. and we came up with pizza... We've been on a pizza kick for months now, after discovering this awesome little place - Bodrum - not too far from our apartment that does flatbread pizzas. In the summer they have a great little outdoor area and in the winter, the fiery pizza oven makes it super-cozy inside... Its become our go-to when we want grown-up pizza (there's wine, you see...)

But i digress - i was talking pizza at home... so, anyway... after a few seconds of though, we realized that pizza can be incredibly easy if you choose to buy all pre-made parts and just assemble them or can be more complicated if you choose to make your own pizza dough & sauce or have to pre-cook any of your toppings. Therefore, i'm calling it -

Pizza is the new Pasta!

(dont worry sunday nights, you'll always be pasta night...)

In addition to it being wherever you want on the difficulty meter, another great things about pizza night is everyone can have whatever they want. As long as you can agree on a crust, you are golden! This is imperative when you have people with differing tastes - vegetarian, meat-eating, pepper-adverse, whatever...

This particular take on pizza was fairly simple - store bought crust (TJs wheat crust - 99cents! woo! though, i highly recommend stopping by your local pizzeria and asking to buy dough - did you know they sell it? i never did until i read it on someone else's blog a while back), doctored up store-bought sauce and we stayed fairly basic with our cheeses & other toppings. However, now that we've declared pizza as a new theme, you can be assured we'll be experimenting. and, of course, since half of my stress is 'blog fodder' - sharing it here with you.

Quick & Easy Personalized Pizza
courtesy of me

Special tools used: Pizza stone, pizza peel. If you dont have these, just use baking sheets - one in the oven pre-heating and the back of another one for assembling the pizza

1/4 c cornmeal
1 trader joe's whole wheat pizza crust (feel free to buy one from a store or your pizzeria or make your own instead)

~ 1/2 jar trader joe's pizza sauce
1 tbsp garlic, minced
2 tbsp basil, chiffonaded (is that a word? spell check wants to call it chickenfeed! ha!)

~1 c shredded mozzarella
~1 c shredded asiago

1/4 of an onion, sliced thinly & layers separated into individual pieces
3 small sweet peppers, sliced (think slightly larger than jalepenos)
1 medium tomato, sliced & slices cut in half

crushed red pepper (optional)
oregano

***

Remove pizza dough from fridge and allow to come to room temperature (in its bag)
Place pizza stone in oven on middle rack and preheat to 450°

turn pizza dough out onto lightly floured surface to suck up any lingering stickiness

once dough is no longer wet, start shaping it into a circle. Try to imitate the local pizza dudes and use your fists to turn & stretch it out until it is about 10" around.

spread a fairly generous amount of cornmeal onto your pizza peel (this is IMPORTANT) and place stretched dough on top of it. Continue to stretch and shape until its about 12" diameter. Dont worry if its not a perfect circle - mine tend to end up oblong -as long as its fairly consistent in thickness (with a little extra thickness at the edge) and fits on your stone, its all good.

mix 1/2 of a jar of TJs pizza sauce with the minced garlic & 1 tbsp of the basil

spread that mix evenly over the pizza, leaving about 1/2" - 1" around all edges

sprinkle half of the asiago and half of the mozzarella over the sauce

Now for the customization - here's how we made ours:

onion pieces on entire pizza
pepper slices on half of pizza
tomato slices on the other half of pizza
crushed red pepper on the side with tomato slices (warning - it will bake in and get REALLY hot. be very sparing...)

Back to the whole pizza:
To finish it off, sprinkle remaining basil over toppings, sprinkle remaining cheese over that and sprinkle oregano over the whole thing.

Slide off of pizza peel (this is why the cornmeal is SO important - thats what allows it to slide) onto the hot pizza stone and cook ~ 7 - 8 minutes.

Allow to cool for 3-4 minutes prior to serving to allow cheese to 'set'

Dreaming of Falafel - Paris Edition

2011-02-25T13:23:00.003-05:00

the weirdest thing about our honeymoon...
While we were on it, Paris seemed tough. the whole managing the language, manipulating the city while they had a transit strike going on, stressing over the food to ensure i wasnt eating meat... at times, it seemed like a lot of work for something that was supposed to be vacation...

But in hindsight? everything was amazing... speaking french was fun! transit strike? eh, after the first day, it was all fine (save for the oil shortage that prevented our trip to the Loire Valley), I mean, we're new yorkers - whats a little subway diversion? and food? was i really stressed about the food???

in hindsight, it was everything paris is supposed to be. all the stuff that makes people declare that they love paris. makes us say that we need to make that a frequent trip. with dreams of one day frequenting it enough to call it our second city...

so, while i'm conjuring up another post - a regular post - i'll give you this - a moment in Paris:

L'As du Falafel.

We knew there was a place that we were supposed to go for falafel, but we kept forgetting to look it up. We ended up doing a self-guided walking tour (from Paris Walks, 2nd (On Foot Guides)) through the Marais and stumbled on L'As du Falafel. We'd been walking for a while and the place was kinda nuts what with the 'salesman' on the street and the whole scam feeling of paying a person on the street before you were really on line and all the high school kids everywhere but we though, eh, we may never manage to get to *THE* place for falafel, so why not here?

When we were done, we were kinda like - 'omg, how could anywhere else be better than this???' so, of course, we had to check and see where *THE* place was and, of course, as you've already figured out, it turns out we'd managed to find *THE* place, all on our own...

So while its cold and rainy outside, weather not so unlike that of Paris back in October, all i can think about is 'when we can go back?'

Homemade Nutella (Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread)

2011-02-17T13:24:00.000-05:00

I needed a win.

I dont take well to failure (real or perceived) and its been a week or so of failure on some level. And while i dont back down and hide, i do tend to try to turn things around. When i used to do taxes, this amounted to walking into my boss' office and asking for the easiest return they had. because when failure is all around me, i just want something that works.

This is the culinary equivalent of that easy tax return.

The internet has been buzzing about homemade nutella. The LA Times published their recipe about two years ago but recently, it seems that everyone is all aflutter about it... It seemed to hit a fever pitch somewhere around the holidays and then slowed a bit for some of January and then bam, right back just in time for World Nutella Day - a week and a half or so ago...

So when the universe seemed intent on telling me that i was a failure, i thought, what could be better than homemade nutella? it appears easy enough and, hello, you get nutella in the end. WIN-WIN.

When setting out to choose a recipe, i read a whole bunch. some used cocoa powder, some melted chocolate. some hazelnut oil, some vegetable oil, some no oil. some milk, some powdered milk. I poured through countless versions of this recipe until i came up with a game plan... hazelnuts, cocoa powder, confectioners sugar, & vanilla. Milk & vegetable oil on standby incase i needed them.

it was all going fine, too, right up until i was nearing the end... i felt that i needed a bit more creaminess so i thought, ok self, lets go for a tablespoon of milk...and thats where the unraveling began...

the chocolate? she seized.

if you've never experienced seized chocolate, well, its not pretty... the chocolate gets grainy and unusable. now, i'm still not totally sure why this happened as many bloggers before me had used milk without reporting adverse effects and the fats present from the liquified hazelnuts should have prevented the moisture from the milk (which also had fat in it!) from creating such a disaster, but there it was, in the food processor - a big mess.

but, again, i dont back down so easily so i was all 'its ok - thats what the vegetable oil is for!'

and then bad went to worse...

because while i did manage to make the mixture a bit smoother (though not as creamy & smooth as it should have been) my next taste was pretty much disgust.

my nutella tasted more like wesson oil than it did like anything else.

and thats when i finally gave up. for that night, at least...

The next night, i was hell-bent determined to succeed. So i stopped and picked up another $8.50 worth of hazelnuts and some powdered milk (ha! i'll show that chocolate!) and while i was there, grabbed some hazelnut oil because i did not want Wessonutella again. Hazelnut oil is not cheap, but have you heard the saying 'throw money at the problem'? well, thats what i was doing. I figured i could pay my way into success and frankly, I was ok with that...

(It turns out that Jordan, being the husband extraordinare that he is - not to mention a fan of all things nutella, especially since our honeymoon in paris - also stopped at our beloved fairway for more hazelnuts and powdered milk... he's good like that. no, you cant have him... and yes, that means we have more ingredients for MORE nutella!)

Thankfully, things went much, much better this time. I'd managed to get my cocoa & sugar proportions sorted out the night before, so this time was a cinch... of course, my blood pressure was most likely about 345/150 the whole time, waiting for something to go wrong, but FINALLY, FINALLY - SUCCESS.

So next time you need a win? This is your answer.

Homemade Nutella
courtesy of the LA Times, modifications by me

2 cups raw hazelnuts (if you can find pre-peeled ones, get them. If not, i'll give you instructions on how to peel them below)

1/3 c cocoa powder
2/3 c powdered sugar
2 tbsp powdered milk

~1/2 tsp vanilla
~2 tbsp hazelnut oil

***

Preheat oven to 375°

Spread hazelnuts out on a baking sheet and place in oven to toast for ~ 8 minutes. They will be fragrant and, if pre-peeled, 'shiny' when they are ready.

If your nuts are not pre-peeled:
Place warm nuts (be careful) in a clean dishtowel and rub, rub, rub. The skins will rub off of the hazelnuts and into the towel. You may find that you want to shake the towel out a few times and re-rub the hazelnuts. You want to get as much skin off as you possibly can.

Once your nuts are peeled (or, right after they come out of the oven if they were pre-peeled) throw them into a food processor fitted with the basic, all purpose blade.

Pulse a few times until the nuts start to break down, then turn the processor on and let it whirl for about 5 - 6 minutes. During that time, you will want to pause it and open it up and scrape down the sides, but you wont have to do this much after the first couple of minutes...

during those 5 - 6 minutes, your hazelnuts will first turn to a meal, then to a dust, then to a peanut butter-like substance, then will congeal and then, finally, into something that can only be described as really runny peanut butter consistency.

Once that has happened, add the cocoa powder, powdered sugar and powdered milk in and turn the food processor back on. You'll end up letting it run another minute or so, but you will have to scrape it down at least once during that time as the cocoa and powdered sugar will have, inevitably, gone everywhere...

This is now the point where you have some decisions to make. Taste the chocolaty-hazelnutty goodness and figure out how its working for you. Some people will add a bit more sugar or a bit more cocoa. some will think this consistency is good. some will think they want it smoother or creamier...

At this point, i turned the food processor back on and used the little streaming hole to add first ~ 1/4 tsp of vanilla and ~ 1/2 tbsp of hazelnut oil. then another 1/2 tbsp hazelnut oil. then i tried it again and basically added those same ingredients - another 1/4 tsp vanilla and probably about another 1 tbsp of hazelnut oil until i got a taste and a consistency that worked for me. note: its going to thicken in the fridge, so at this point, you will want it to be a bit looser than you'll actually want the final product to be...

Once you've got something you like, find your best adorable mason jars (or other resealable, airtight container) and fill them up. I found that i got about 2 small mason jars worth of nutella out of mine.

Use as you would regular nutella.

Notes from me & the internet:

Homemade nutella is more expensive (by a lot) than jarred nutella. This is much more for fun & for avoidance of weird ingredients than it is for saving $.
The internet claims this will last anywhere from a week to a month in your fridge. I've only had it for a day, so i dont know.
The internet also tells me that i should let the nutella warm a bit before spreading. good luck with that.
My brain tells me that, if i owned coconut extract, i would have used that instead of vanilla. I've always thought nutella tasted vaguely coconutty and i think it would be good.
Just as i was writing that sentence, my brain thought that maybe a half-cup of macadamia nuts in place of one of the half-cups of hazelnuts would make this tropically delicious.
My brain also tells me that i think, if you were to leave out the powdered milk, you wouldnt need much oil. In this case, you could save yourself $10 and just use wesson, cause you'd probably only use a tsp to a tbsp or so of it and it probably wouldnt affect the flavor much.

Cowboy Caviar (aka Black Eyed Pea Salsa)

2011-02-11T13:41:00.000-05:00

About 6 months ago, my friend E took me to a restaurant where she sometimes worked and sometimes just ate and drank... After hearing so many stories that involved this place, i finally said 'ok, i want to go too!' and so we did.

While there, we did many things, (not the least of which was drink lots and play with stupid iphone/ipod apps) but the thing that stood out the most was the Black Eyed Pea salsa & chips... When E insisted on ordering it, i was skeptical - i'd never eaten a black eyed pea and wasnt sure i wanted to start on that particular day... not to mention that, during this time, with wedding diet still in full mode, i wasnt sure i wanted to waste calories on salsa & chips... but she insisted - we HAD to get this...

she wasnt wrong. this was not plain old salsa and chips... (and we can probably blame a half-lb or so of unlost weight on this stuff...)

Luckily, due to E's connections to this particular restaurant, we could get a basic idea of how it was made... The first time i saw the recipe, i dismissed it as too complicated but when superbowl sunday rolled around last week, i emailed E and said - ok, i'm gonna try it...

(and no, before you asked, it was NOT an homage to the half-time show... we banned that stupid 'band' from our wedding and i'd like to ban them from my life!!!)

I dont know how close mine is to the original (given that i havent been there in more than 6 months) but i do know that its good. it definitely seemed to be a crowd-pleaser on super bowl sunday and bonus points? its better if you make it a day early, making it one of those fantastic recipes for entertaining as there is no scrambling around at the last minute while you are simultaneously trying to finish vacuuming, showering and also opening the door for the first few guests...

Cowboy Caviar (aka Black Eyed Pea Salsa)
courtesy of scribbled restaurant (unnamed to protect the innocent) notes as interpreted by me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

NOTE: this serves a LOT. E's party had 32 people and we only went through 1/3 - 1/2 of the total recipe...

3 c black eyed peas

2 red peppers
2 green peppers
2 large red onions
~ 1/2 cup of cherry, grape or other small tomatoes (totally optional, mine were going to go bad if i didnt use them, so i threw them in...)

1/4 c minced garlic (i used the stuff from a jar for this particular recipe... thats too much to mince!)
1 15-oz jar jalepenos, juice reserved and jalepenos roughly chopped

2 cans no-salt diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, roughly chopped (about 1/3 cup)

1 c cholula hot sauce (we used 1/3 chili lime and 2/3 original because its what we had...)
1 c worcestershire sauce (being a pescatarian, we used the regular kind but you can find veg worcestershire sauce if you are serving vegetarians)
2/3 c olive oil
2 tbsp dried oregano

salt & pepper to taste (start with 1 tbsp of each as mentioned below and go from there)

***

If using dried beans:
Soak 1 heaping cup of dried beans for about 6 -8 hours (do not oversoak! i accidentally did and fermented my beans and had to start over... oops.)
or
Place dried beans in pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. boil for 3 - 4 minutes and then remove from heat. Let stand in hot water for ~ 90 minutes.
Regardless of soaking method:
Once beans have been soaked, drain and cover again with fresh water. Bring to a boil and boil ~ 15 minutes or until beans have softened, but are not mushy

If using canned beans:
Drain 2 cans of beans & set aside

After preparing beans of any kind:
Using your food processor fitted with the shredding disc, shred peppers, onions & cherry tomatoes (if using)
(yes you could do this by hand but oh my god thats a lot of chopping)
Drain excess liquid & put into a mixing bowl

Add in the garlic, the roughly chopped jalepenos (save the juice for later), the drained diced tomatoes & the chopped parsley and stir to combine.

If you still see a lot of excess liquid, drain it off again.

Add in black eyed peas & stir some more.

In a separate bowl, combine hot sauce, worcestershire sauce, olive oil, oregano & 1 tbsp each salt & pepper. Whisk to combine fully.

Pour hot sauce mixture over the vegetable/pea mixture and stir a bit to combine. Do not over-mix or you run the risk of smushing the black eyed peas...

refrigerate overnight and serve with sturdy tortilla chips (we used scoops and they worked well)

Rosemary-Spiced Nuts

2011-02-09T10:43:00.002-05:00

A number of years back, my friend Katie was having a few of us over for something - I cant remember if there was a reason or what, but I do remember that we were headed out to the burbs... This was before my days of all things food, so when she announced that she was going to make us spiced nuts and other assorted appetizer-type foods, i was all 'who is this adult who has taken over katie's body???'

While i dont remember the details of the weekend, i distinctly remembered those nuts as they blew my mind... something that never would have occurred to me - doctoring up a can of mixed nuts - was SO good! its probably one of the moments i can pinpoint which led me to being the food-obsessed person i am now. (the other would be the first time Roopa cooked me dinner way back when we were still crazy single party girls...)

Katie's original recipe came from a Nigella Lawson cookbook and was Nigella's take on the Union Square Cafe bar nuts. Over the past 4 or 5 years, i've made rosemary-spiced nuts in varying ways - sometimes following Nigella, sometimes following any of the assorted other recipes you find when googling for spiced nuts or rosemary nuts.

After years of making so many variations, this version will be the one i stick to as this was the first time i didnt feel that i was missing something or had used too much of something.. They have enough heat without being over-powering. Enough rosemary without tasting like a bush. Enough sweet to satisfy my need for all things sweet. and enough butter to hold it all together but not so much that they make your hands greasy...

Rosemary-Spiced Nuts
courtesy of google searches everywhere, as adapted by me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

~1 lb assorted mixed nuts, roasted but not salted (we used almonds, cashews, brazil nuts, pecans & hazelnuts, i think...)

2 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tbsp light brown sugar

1 tbsp white sugar
1.5 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped finely - a mezzaluna works wonders for this (note: dried rosemary will not work well in this recipe. If you cannot find fresh rosemary, my parents have a big bush of it in their backyard. They'll never notice if you steal some...)
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 tsp fleur de sel (or other sea salt)
1/3 tsp ground white pepper (i'm sure you could use black)

***

Preheat oven to 350°
Spread nuts on a baking sheet and toast ~ 7 minutes until just fragrant. (do not turn off the oven yet and dont put the baking sheet in the sink yet either)

while nuts are toasting, mix the butter & all of the sugar & spice in a saucepan. Heat all over medium heat, stirring, until the butter melts and all of the sugar & spice is well combined.

when nuts are done toasting, throw them in the sauce pan & mix to coat the nuts. continue mixing and 'cooking' for about 3 minutes.

Remove nuts from heat and spread back on the baking sheet. Put them back in the oven for 3 - 4 minutes to bake the butter into the nuts.

Serve warm or room temperature.

Eggs in Tomato Sauce

2011-02-05T13:04:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, NYC issued yet-another winter storm warning... Ice all morning turning to rain in the afternoon. In an unusual moment of forethought, i turned to Jordan and suggested that we go shopping to ensure we had breakfast in the house because there was no way I was going to want to go out in ice and rain... that led to the inevitable "so what do you want for breakfast" conversation that, in most houses goes something like this:

What do you want for breakfast?
I dont know, what do you want?
I dont know, what do you want?
Maybe XXX?
Nah, i dont want that
Ok, so what do you want?
I dont know - anything is fine.
Well, anything except XXX, right?
Yeah, whatever - anything...

etc etc etc.

(dont lie - you've had that conversation too...)

But this time, i was ready. Ready to skip the conversation and move straight from "what do you want for breakfast?" to a decision.

I wanted eggs in tomato sauce. and thankfully, he didnt say no.

A couple years back, I saw a recipe on Smitten Kitchen. She'd been at the Martha Stewart show and watched one of the producers make poached eggs in tomato sauce and had gone home and replicated the recipe... and i looked at it and though, 'thats a bit odd'...

then, sometime later, i was elsewhere on the internet and i saw something similar to it and thought 'maybe thats not so odd'...

and then one day, i was bored of everything else and made it. and it turns out, its not odd at all... since then, have adapted it into something way quicker/easier (read: jarred sauce, FTW!) Its something i've been making for so long that i actually had to look back and make sure i hadnt blogged it already...

So, imagine my amusement when we were flipping through that book that i've raved about time and time again - Mad Hungry - Feeding Men & Boys and found out that the recipe Smitten Kitchen posted - its in there... and it makes sense - she is/was a producer on the Martha Stewart Show, and that probably means that woman who made it that morning she was there? Probably Lucinda...

This recipe is so simple and the way i've adapted it, you probably already have everything you need in your kitchen... It can be made to feed one or it can be made to feed 7. Can be breakfast, can be dinner. Could be served vegetarian benedict-style over an english muffin with spinach in the middle or eaten alone. the eggs can be left super-runny (poached, if you will) or cooked more for those who are runny-yoke-adverse... If your family is split on preferences, everyone can have their own version with just a little more work...

it feels like so much more than just eggs and toast, but its not much more difficult. not at all.

and the possibilities are endless.

Eggs in Tomato Sauce
courtesy of me, inspired, as it turns out, by Lucinda Scala Quinn

1/2 jar tomato sauce (i like Newman's Own Roasted Garlic for this)
~ 1/4 c water
pinch of crushed red pepper (optional)

5 eggs

5 slices bread

salt & pepper (optional)
parmesan cheese (optional)

***

Pour tomato sauce, water and crushed red pepper into a heavy frying pan over medium heat. Stir to combine.

Allow to heat up and sauce to thicken just a bit, stirring once or twice.

Once sauce has thickened every so slightly and is bubbling a little bit, lower heat a smidge to medium-low and carefully break eggs into the sauce. Hold the eggs close to the sauce as you break them (this isnt the time to show off your 1-handed egg breaking skills) to minimize the fall so that the yolk stays together and the white doesnt spread out very far.

Cover the pan and set your timer for about 5 minutes.

Throw your bread in the toaster.

After 5 minutes, your whites should be pretty much cooked. If you are interested in having runny yolks, you'll probably want to pull them out at this time. If you are like me and are very runny-white adverse and therefore, paranoid, allow to simmer another minute or two.

Spoon each egg over once piece of toast and divide the remaining sauce among the eggs.

Sprinkle with salt, pepper & parmesan, if desired.

Gougères

2011-02-02T20:08:00.008-05:00

Have you had gougères? I bet you think they're hard to make, what with all the puffy, cheesy, yumminess...

you are so wrong.

(if you havent had them, puffy, cheesy, yumminess pretty much sums it up... and now you know you want them...)

Jordan and I were both, separately, first introduced to gougères at Artisanal... (i'm pretty sure our marriage is based on a joint love of that place...) But Jordan was the one who decided that he wanted to make them at home... and i was all, 'knock yourself out, dude, but leave me out of it!'.

and so, one day, i came home to gougères.

That was a good day.

They were supposed to make more appearances but we never seemed to get it together at the right time, etc, so it wasnt until we went to Miette Culinary Studio and took the gnocchi class (a birthday present from him to me that we put off until after the wedding diets were over...) that they reappeared. and i got to see, first-hand, just how not-hard they really were...

Fast forward another month when, for Christmas, i recieved the book that the entire food-blogging world had been talking about for 3 months - Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan. Despite it being far from vegetarian-friendly and our over-abundance of cook books, it was one of the only things i actually asked for this christmas... between the gorgeous pictures i'd seen while flipping through it, the glowing reviews of all things Dorie and especially this book, and our 2 week culinary adventure in Paris, i REALLY couldnt wait to get my hands on this book...

So imagine our amusement when the very first recipe in the book was for the one french thing we actually knew how to make! Gougères! ha! we were thrilled to see that Dorie's recipe mirrored all the recipes we'd used prior (it made us feel smart & capable!!!) and it was just the motivation we needed to make them again.

Dorie gives great instructions at the end for how to pre-make gougères and freeze them for later consumption... We havent gotten that far yet (though i've included the instructions for you below) but it really is pretty much the greatest thing ever to consider that you could make a big batch of these, store them in the freezer and then pop a few in any time you wanted the puffy, cheesy, yumminess that is gougères...

Gougères

courtesy of Dorie Greenspan - Around my French Table with teeny modification based on instructions at Miette Culinary Stuido

1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup water
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

5 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups coarsely grated Gruyère, divided

***

Preheat the oven to 425°. Make sure rack is in the center.

Line a baking sheets with parchment

Bring the milk, water, butter, and salt to a boil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat.

Add the flour all at once, lower the heat to medium-low, and immediately start stirring energetically with a wooden spoon or heavy whisk. The dough will come together and a light crust will form on the bottom of the pan. Keep stirring—with vigor—for another minute or two to dry the dough. The dough should now be very smooth.

Turn the dough into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or into a bowl that you can use for mixing with a hand mixer or a wooden spoon and elbow grease. (we went with a hand mixer & wooden spoon combo at home but had done them with the mixer at Miette)

Let the dough sit for a minute, then add the eggs one by one and beat until the dough is thick and shiny. Make sure that each egg is completely incorporated before you add the next, and don't be concerned if the dough separates—by the time the last egg goes in, the dough will come together again.

Beat in 1 1/4 c of the grated gruyère.

Place the dough in a pastry bag (or, if you dont have one, in a gallon-sized ziplock with the bottom corner cut off just a bit). Squeeze about 1 tablespoon of dough for each gougère, leaving about 2 inches of space between the mounds. Sprinkle each mound with a couple shreds of gruyère.

Slide the baking sheet into the oven and immediately turn the oven temperature down to 375°.

Bake for 12 minutes, rotate the pan front-to-back to ensure even cooking.

Continue baking until the gougères are golden, firm, and puffed - another 12 to 15 minutes or so.

Serve warm, or transfer the pans to racks to cool. (note: yeah right - has anyone actually had them last long enough to cool???)

Storing (straight from Dorie)
The best way to store gougères is to shape the dough, freeze the mounds on a baking sheet, and then, when they're solid, lift them off the sheet and pack them airtight in plastic bags. Bake them straight from the freezer—no need to defrost—just give them a minute or two more in the oven. Leftover puffs can be kept at room temperature over night and reheated in a 350-degree-F oven, or they can be frozen and reheated before serving.

Pasta e Fagioli

2011-01-29T13:00:00.009-05:00

growing up, the italian side of my family was pretty influential... a few generations removed from italy, i was quite american, as my my dad married a non-italian girl making him pretty american (and obviously, that girl he married wasnt italian), but then there were my grandparents... neither was born in italy, but i believe their parents were, so they'd grown up pretty italian. and marrying eachother, they carried some of that into their own household. which means once i was old enough to spell, they would speak italian around me so that i didnt understand... (in hindsight, this excluded my mom as well... hmmm...)

anyway, despite my lack of any semblance of fluency in italian, there are certain words that i learned quite differently than you probably did...

we all know what mut-za-rell (mozzarella) is, but do you know what a ri-gut is? how about mana-gut? how about Jordan's favorite - gan-ool?

No? well, thats how my italian grandmother says ricotta (though, actually, we mostly called it pot cheese, which is apparently a cousin of ricotta...), manicotti and, jordan's favorite - cannoli...

and thats how i said all of those things until probably some time in high school when i discovered the Olive Garden or something...

anyway, whats my point? Oh, i'm getting there - i promise... anyway, when i was in high school, my father used to make us pastavazool... and just like manicotti and canolli before it, i had no earthly idea that it was not spelled the way it sounded. in fact, i dont think that i knew that it was something that anyone other than my family ate. i mean, it was called pastavazool for chrissake - my dad must have made that up, right? that word cant be real, can it?

So imagine my non-italian high-school boyfriends amusement when we were at his house one day, raiding the pantry, and i pulled out a can and asked him what 'pasta E fag-e-oli' was... he's all - 'are you kidding? your dad makes it all the time!' and i'm all like, 'HUH? thats how you spell that??? for real??? how in the world is pasta e fagioli possibly pastavazool???'

anyway, i dont know that i'd had pasta e fagioli since high school but during this past week, when it was snowing - YET AGAIN - i wanted something warm and hearty... and i got pasta e fagioli in my head and went recipe searching... yet nothing i found was really right. pasta e fagioli translates to 'pasta with beans', so why was i finding so many recipes with MEAT in them? or weird spices? or no tomatoes? or - the weirdest one of all - pureed beans? wha-? none of them lived up to my memory, so i set out to create my own... a little from here, a little from there and a lot from my memory...

In the end, i dont know how close i was to what my dad used to make, but what i came up with is definitely "pasta with beans", heartier than a soup, 100% vegetarian (and would be vegan if you skip the parmesan on top) and exactly what a cold, snowy night calls for.

Pasta e Fagioli
courtesy of me
click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

~ 2/3 of a box of ditalini pasta

1 - 2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 of a vidalia onion, diced
1 small carrot, diced
1 small celery heart, diced
4 cloves garlic, smashed & roughly chopped

1.5 tsp minced fresh sage (or .5 tsp dried sage)
1.5 tsp minced fresh oregano (or .5 tsp dried oregano)
1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp dried thyme. dried rosemary isnt so great...)
1 tsp dried basil (or 1 tbsp fresh basil)

1 can stewed tomatoes (not drained)
2 c vegetable broth, divided (feel free to use chicken or beef broth if you are not vegetarian)
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 can cannelini beans
1 can red kidney beans

~ 12 turns of a pepper grinder - probably about 1/2 tsp if you do not have freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
2 - 3 dashes tabasco (optional)

***

These directions are incredibly flexible. Below i'm giving you approximate cooking times, but all were determined by how long it took me to get to the next step...

Prepare pasta - cooking ~ 3 minutes less than the time indicated on the box for al dente pasta. Set aside.

In a large, heavy pot (i used this one) heat oil over medium - medium-high heat until it shimmers

dump in the onion, stir briefly to coat all with oil and let it cook while you chop up your carrot, celery and garlic. (for me, this was about 5 minutes...)

Add the carrots, celery and garlic & stir to combine. let it cook while you start chopping herbs - again, probably about 5 minutes. The veggies will be soft and might start to brown every so slightly.

Add the chopped herbs. I used the fresh/dried combination shown above because its what i had on hand... see my notes above about exchanges you can do between fresh & dried herbs...

mix and cook ~ 1 minute

Add the stewed tomatoes & their juices along with 1 c of the broth. Break up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon and allow to cook ~ 5 minutes.

Briefly remove from heat and puree ~ 1/3 - 1/2 of what is in the pot. You want to break up any large chunks of anything but not reduce it to mush... You can do this in a blender, food processor, with an immersion blender - whatever works for you - just be careful as the liquid is hot!

return the entire thing to the pot and return the pot to medium heat...

simmer 2 - 3 minutes.

add the drained diced tomatoes, the remaining cup of broth & both cans of beans (dont forget to rinse them)
along with ~ 12 turns of the pepper grinder (in a cooking class we took at Miette Culinary Studio we learned that fresh pepper should be used in a ratio of 3 turns of the grinder per serving as this is what most people will ask for in a restaurant. I always like to leave a little room, so i dialed it back to the equivalent of 4 servings worth of pepper because you can always add more later... and jordan did...)

add the crushed red pepper & tabasco, if desired. stir to combine and allow to simmer another few minutes.

Add the not-quite-cooked pasta, stir to combine and allow to simmer ~ 5 more minutes. Taste the pasta to ensure that it is cooked through and once it is, remove from heat.

Serve with freshly shaved parmigiano reggiano (if you have it or any other grated cheese if you dont) and crusty bread.

reheating note: this reheats fantastically. I packed some up for lunch - added a generous amount of parmesan cheese to it while it was still cold - and reheated it in the microwave at work for about 2 minutes, stirring once.

Not-so-slow Roasted Tomatoes

2011-01-25T15:00:00.000-05:00

for the better part of a year, i'd been reading about slow-roasted tomatoes...

given that tomatoes have never really been my favorite, it always seemed like they would take way more time than i wanted to devote to making them - i'm nothing if not impatient and the idea of waiting 3 hours for something i might not even like that much? yeah, not high on my priority list...

however, a few weeks back, we were discussing dinner and while i have no recollection of what our main course was, i distinctly remember the discussion of sides... Jordan mentioned something about roasted tomatoes and i was like, 'eh, what about blahblahblah...' but it got me thinking...

what about tomatoes?

i have developed something of a taste for them (still hate the anemic pink ones) so maybe that could work... but, as mentioned, all the recipes wanted me to devote like, 3 hours of my life to these things and i was not on board. because, lets see, if i leave work at 6 & stop at the store, i'm not getting home much before 7. which means those 3 hour tomatoes wont be done until 10pm, and thats assuming i dont even take my coat off or change before getting started...

but i kept looking, because i started thinking about all the times i've used roasted tomatoes in other things and how they've been pretty good, and so maybe with the right spices, etc, they didnt need to be quite so slow-roasted???

and then came everyone's favorite love-to-hate her tv personality - rachael ray... i know, i know...

but, but, but!

she roasts tomatoes in like, an hour! an hour! i know, blasphemy, but i can do an hour!!! sure, i had my doubts - would they be good? but really, what was the worst that could happen, we'd throw them away, right? so i went for it...

As its not exactly tomato season here in NYC, i couldnt find any pretty plums, so i substituted some camparis, undoubtedly flown in from some warm, exotic location (what, i never labeled this post as local...) and didnt look back.

and while i'm sure that slow roasted tomatoes are still superior, i'd whole-heartedly recommend these for nights when you want to eat before 10 pm...

Not-so-slow Roasted Tomatoes
courtesy of Rachael Ray with modifications by me

1 pint campari tomatoes
~ 2 tbsp olive oil
~ 1 tsp dried thyme
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (psst: wanna take the easy way out? 1 tbsp of pre-minced garlic would work just fine)
sea salt (fine or coarse - whatever you have)
freshly ground pepper

***

Preheat the oven to 375°.
Remove any stems from the tomatoes and slice them in half.
De-seed & de-gel them.

Lay the tomatoes, cut side up, in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with thyme, garlic, sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Roast for 40 minutes.

Increase the oven temperature to 400° and roast the tomatoes until caramelized, about 20 minutes more.

Turn off the oven and leave the tomatoes inside for 10 minutes, then remove and let cool.

Once they are cool enough, start snacking. These worked really well as an appetizer when the rest of dinner took a little too long ;)

Pumpkin Spice Beer Bread

2011-01-22T08:16:00.002-05:00

so, we have a little problem.

Too much beer.

i know, that sounds like an odd problem, right? but here's the thing. Jordan? he's a beer dork. geek. snob. whatever you want to call it, the boy likes his beer. and over the course of our relationship, he (and the bartenders at Pony Bar and the brewers from Captain Lawrence) has passed some of that on to me... so when it was time to stock the bar for the wedding, we insisted on having 4 different kinds of beer. 2 of which required approximately 100 miles of driving to acquire.

yes, we have issues.

anyway, turned out that people didnt drink as much beer as we'd predicted so we have a LOT of it left. More than we could drink. and here's the kicker... because we got 'special beers', its easy to get sick of it... and also, its now winter and all the winter beers are out (winter warmer! woo!).

and, and, and...

long story short? we have about 3 or 4 cases of beer in our apartment. (this is down from the 7 or 8 we had in october, so, SCORE!)

anyway, i was reading another blog the other day and the girl put out a call for recipes that involved beer... and it got me thinking - if we cant drink all that beer before it goes bad, maybe we can eat it! So i went searching for ideas...

There are lots of beer breads out there, but this particular beer bread recipe results from the fact that one of those cases of beer is Wolaver's Will Stevens' Pumpkin Ale. (october wedding + my love of all things pumpkin + the fact that J & I bonded over pumpkin beer on our early dates + the fact that its organic - how could we not have had this one???) Many of the beer breads out there are savory - calling for herbs, spices or cheese. but none of those seemed right for a pumpkin ale, so i did some thinking and finally cobbled this one together...

The edges came out a bit chewy, but that might be because i didnt cool it very well... but the inside is a nice, dense bread - not unlike a banana bread consistency - that makes an excellent snack & benefits nicely from a smear of butter.

1 down, 23 more pumpkin beers to go... sigh.

Pumpkin Spice Beer Bread
courtesy of me

3 c all-purpose flour
1/3 c brown sugar (we used a combo of light & dark - use what you have)
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder
1 scant tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 bottle Wolavers Will Stevens' Pumpkin Ale
1/4 c butter, melted

***

Preheat oven to 375°

Prepare loaf pan by greasing with butter. be generous but not gross.

In a bowl, mix the first 8 ingredients. Make sure brown sugar is broken apart & integrated.

Pour in beer and watch it foam up, then mix until just combined.

Transfer to loaf pan.

Pour melted butter over top of the batter.

Bake ~ 45 mins, making sure cake tester (toothpick, knife, fork, whatever) comes out clean.

Transfer to wire rack to cool.

NOTE 1: I suspect that you could substitute 1 tbsp of pumpkin pie spice in for the cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger if you so chose...

NOTE 2: You could take those first 8 ingredients and mix them up and then put them in a mason jar or tin-tie bag, put a bow on it, & present it with a bottle of pumpkin beer (and the directions) for a cute little DIY, beer-depleting gift... (or party favor, which, if i didnt think i'd be made fun of for, i'd totally be doing for J's birthday tonight...)

Skillet-Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

2011-01-19T10:29:00.002-05:00

If i wasnt all into using the actual recipe names as titles, this one would be called "this is why we're fat"...

a week and a half ago, i was having a cranky (read: PMSy) day and wanted a cupcake. then, in true gemini fashion (no, i dont believe i'm a taurus now...), changed my mind like, 12 minutes later.

However, Jordan being the good (read: fan of non-crankyness) husband that he is, he brought home a brownie. and announced that he'd be making me a brownie sundae.

he had no idea.

that was 2 weekends ago. do you have any idea how many brownie sundaes have been consumed since then?

its not pretty, thats all i'm going to admit...

so, i was dreaming of brownie sundaes when i was suddenly reminded about the blondie sundaes i used to make when i was going into my junior year of college... they were awful - wanna know why? cause i was dieting. and they consisted of fat-free blondies with fat free froyo and sugar free caramel sauce or hot fudge. and reduced fat whipped cream, or something equally chemically and disgusting. I think the whole thing clocked in around 180 calories or something. there is nothing natural about a blondie sundae that is under 200 calories. Nothing.

so anyway, i'm thinking of this and then THIS pops into my inbox. because that martha, she sends me these recipes - every day! (yes, i could unsubscribe, but what would be the fun in that???) and i'm thinking, that looks WAY better than the 180 calorie blondie sundaes of yore...

and, wait for it (sorry, we've been watching past seasons of How I Met Your Mother, so its all 'wait for it' these days..), we got a new cast iron skillet at my bridal shower and we havent used it yet because i kept telling J he couldnt cook meat in it until i cooked something else in it as i was scared that if meat was the first thing, that it would always taste like meat forever and ever... and this cookie - this was something that was not meat that i could make! i could break in the skillet! woo-hoo!

when telling J, i'd be making this, he made fat faces at me (cause we're gross, you see) and i promised that i'd bring the leftovers to work to get them out of our house.

those leftovers most certainly did NOT come to work today as there was NO way we were sharing with anyone... if this cookie is what makes me fat, then bring on the fat clothes!

Skillet-Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
courtesy of Martha, slight modifications by me

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

***

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

If your skillet requires seasoning, lightly grease and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.

In another bowl, cream butter and both sugars until mixture is light and fluffy. (taste it to make sure. or at least tell people thats why you are tasting it...)

Add egg and vanilla; mix until they are fully incorporated.

Add flour mixture, and beat until just combined.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Transfer dough to your prepared ovenproof skillet, and press to flatten, covering bottom of pan.

Bake until edges are brown and top is golden ~ 40 minutes. (Don't overbake; it will continue to cook a few minutes out of the oven.)

Transfer from skillet to a wire rack to cool ~ 15 minutes.

Cut into wedges and serve with your favorite vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, hot fudge, whipped cream or anything else you like on your blondie sundaes. Just make sure none of it is low fat or fat free :)

Blueberry Breakfast Quinoa

2011-01-15T08:27:00.002-05:00

A number of years back, my best crunchy granola friend introduced me to this weird word... Quinoa.

Keen-wah.

and i'm all, 'huh?' and she's all 'dude.'

turns out that its like rice and couscous and all that stuff, but healthy! like, you know how when you are dieting and people are all 'no white anything! no rice!'? turns out quinoa is generally allowed.

and so i made some.
and made some more.

but it seemed that i could never make quinoa with enough flavor. didnt understand why, when i go out and get a quinoa salad it was awesome but when i made it at home? a bit blah.

But then a few weeks ago, i'm reading tumblr. at least i think it was tumblr... and someone mentioned making breakfast quinoa instead of oatmeal. and mentioned how they cooked it in milk instead of in water. and so now i'm all 'thats a different idea...' but i googled and, turns out, not all that unusual of an idea... huh. who knew?

(however, it is unusual enough that my spell check keeps giving me little red squiggly lines under quinoa. also, i think quinoa might be one of my top 10 words... especially given the number of times i've written it above...)

Blueberry Breakfast Quinoa
courtesy of me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

1 c quinoa, rinsed
1 c skim milk
1 c water
2 tbsp honey
1 cinnamon stick

1/2 c blueberries

sugar & powdered cinnamon (optional)

***

Place quinoa, milk, water, honey & cinnamon stick in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

Reduce to an easy simmer, cover and cook ~ 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all liquid is absorbed. (Take care that liquid is not bubbling over the sides - i used a 2 qt saucepan and mine did...)

Note: yes, i know that the traditional way to make quinoa is to boil the liquids first and then add the grain but this works just fine too and takes less paying attention...

Once all liquid is absorbed, stir in blueberries & remove from heat. Carefully remove cinnamon stick (it will be hot)

top with a pinch of sugar & a couple of shakes of cinnamon, if desired.

best eaten immediately, but can be divided out into individual servings (i got 3 servings out of mine) and microwaved the next morning. (about 1 - 1.5 minutes, mixing once. If it seems dry at the mixing point, add a splash of milk in and it will get creamy all over again)

Roasted Cauliflower with Breadcrumbs

2011-01-11T10:48:00.001-05:00

I love when mistakes work out really well...

The other night, while Jordan was cooking the main meal, i was put in charge of vegetables. I'd seen a recipe (another martha recipe...) for pasta with roasted cauliflower earlier in the week and it had kinda stuck in my head. I'd suggested it for dinner, but we both decided it sounded a little bland, so we picked something else instead, but decided to roast the cauliflower as a side.

So you already know we cook in a teeny, tiny, cramped kitchen, but on this particular night, we were also juggling 6 loads of laundry... and therefore, trying to time dinner just right to be able to move the laundry over to the dryer in time to be able to let it dry all the way before they locked up the laundry room. (oh, did you think we had our own washer/dryer? hahahahaha)

Why am i telling you the boring details of our day-to-day domestic life? because hopefully you can see where this is going... not enough space, not enough time, too much pressure... it leads to mistakes...

So i get the cauliflower all ready - salt, pepper, onions, garlic all on the baking sheet and into the oven.

and just as its time to run downstairs to change that laundry over, i think, let me mix the cauliflower around once... and i open the oven and realize, i never put the olive oil on it!

oh crap.

but i figured i'd try to salvage it so i poured some oil over it, tossed it all around and put it back in the oven.

and it worked.

not only did it work, but the next night, i tried to make it again, only this time without the mistake, and lest you think I'm making this story up to make myself sound like i've made something new thats really just totally basic, i'll have you know, from now on, i'm using method #1 - mistake style.

Roasted Cauliflower with Breadcrumbs
courtesy of me

~ 2 large slices semi-stale bread (I had made bread in the breadmaker earlier in the week and 2 thick pieces of that worked really really well)

1 head cauliflower, rinsed and cut into florets
1 red onion, cut in slices
4 - 5 cloves garlic, slightly smashed and cut in half
salt
pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

***

Preheat oven to 300°

Tear bread into small pieces and then, using a food processor or minichopper, process until you have crumbs.
Spread on a foil-covered baking sheet and toast ~ 15 mins, tossing frequently. When done, crumbs will be crunchy and smell, well, toasty. Set aside.

Turn oven up to 475°
Toss cauliflower, onion & garlic on foil covered baking sheet (feel free to use the same one from above)
Salt & Pepper according to your personal taste.

Place in the oven for ~ 8 minutes.

Carefully pull the sheet out of the oven, toss cauliflower/onion/garlic to ensure no pieces are stuck to the sheet & drizzle about 2 tbsp olive oil over the top.

Toss again and return to the oven.

Roast for another ~15 minutes, tossing once.

While still hot, transfer to individual plates and sprinkle generously with bread crumbs.

Black Bean Burritos

2011-01-07T10:39:00.002-05:00

Listen closely. Do you hear that sound?

That sound is the sound of my jeans getting just a little higher...

You know, mom jeans.

No, this isnt an annoucement of kitchenhell expansion but i'm pretty sure with this one, i've earned my suburban soccer mom credibility, just without the kids and the SUV...

Jordan was going to be out for the night. While i'd almost always rather he was around, it is nice to occasionally be the only opinion that i have to consider when picking dinner. (the irony is that he would have never said no to this one! ha!)

I was perusing Martha during my lunch hour to see what crazy concoction i would come up with and came across a recipe for bean burritos... and martha's recipe made 8 burritos and i was like, eh, i'll cut the recipe and make 4. and then i kept changing and changing and changing... and ended up with something that was much more my own. however, as a result, that halving the recipe thing? after all my changes and add ins, i ended up with a recipe for 10 burritos...

but thats ok - and this is where the suburban mom thing comes in - because martha, bless her heart, gives you instructions on how to freeze and reheat these suckers! so you know what that means, right? that means a fridge & freezer full of quick, healthy (protein, check, fiber, check, calories per burrito ~ 425, check!) and economical (it cost about $20 for all of the ingredients) meals! that i've become one of those people who cooked and then refrigerated and froze single servings so that they'd be easily available for brown-bag lunches or on a busy weeknight when the kids are hungry, the husband needs his shirt ironed, the dog needs a bath and mom needs a break! Calgon, take me away!

oh god, i think i just passed out from the image that was conjured...

Black Bean Burritos

courtesy of me, loosely based on Martha Stewart's Bean Burritos

1/2 c rice (dry)

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, cut in 1" strips

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 jalapeno, minced (ribs and seeds removed, for less heat)
1/3 teaspoon ground cumin

1/3 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
Coarse salt and ground pepper

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes with jalapenos, drained
2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, drained and rinsed

3/4 c water

1 c frozen corn kernels

1/4 c scallions, thinly sliced

10 burrito-size flour tortillas, 10 inches each

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheese, mexican blend

Salsa and sour cream, optional

***

Cook rice & set aside.

Turn oven on to 300°

Heat oil in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add onions, red pepper, garlic, jalapeno, cumin & chili powder; season with salt and pepper.

Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add tomato paste & diced tomatoes, and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Increase heat to medium-high. Add beans and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, & cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add corn; cook to heat through, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat

Stir in scallions.

Heat tortillas by placing them on aluminum foil and then into the oven for about 3 minutes. Check to see if they are warm. Assuming they are, you are ready to make the burritos.

Fill each burrito with a scant 1/4 c of rice, ~ 3/4 c of bean mixture & scant 1/4 of shredded cheese, placing all at one end of the tortillia.

Fold up bottom and hold in sides. Starting from filled end, holding sides in as you work, tightly roll into a bundle. Place on the side, seam side down, and prepare remaining burritos.
Serve immediately, with salsa and sour cream, if using, or take martha's advice & wrap individually in plastic and freeze up to 3 months.

Reheating from refrigerator:
Place on plate and cover with another plate or a napkin. Microwave ~ 2:30. Burrito will be hot to handle. Allow to sit for a minute and then, if desired, wrap halfway in foil and eat from unwrapped end. If you are not wrapping, allow to sit for another minute or so to ensure you dont burn your hands.

Reheating from frozen - instructions per martha: (not yet tested by me)
Remove frozen burritos from plastic wrap. Place on a microwave-safe plate; microwave on high for 3 minutes. Transfer to baking sheet; bake at 450 degrees until crispy, about 10 minutes. If only using a microwave, remove from plastic wrap, and place on a microwave-safe plate, covered with a microwave safe bowl. Defrost at high power for 3 to 4 minutes; uncover, and microwave on high 3 to 4 minutes longer. If only using oven, remove burritos from plastic wrap; rewrap individually in aluminum foil. Place on a baking sheet; bake at 450 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove foil, and bake to crisp, 5 to 10 minutes. (To reheat defrosted burritos, remove any wrapping and bake for 10 minutes).

Apple Oatmeal Crisp

2011-01-03T15:11:00.000-05:00

so i'm on the phone with Jordan, and we're discussing how much butter we consumed this weekend.

its not pretty...

but i'm going to share this with you anyway. because you arent the one who consumed an amount of butter that breaks every single piece of nutrition advice ever given in the history of nutrition.

New Year's eve was quiet this year - we'd been down in North Carolina visiting the family (my side) and got snowed in. and having nothing to do with us being snowed in, i caught a cold from my nephew... but between the sick & the snowed in (which really, was irrelevant, but makes the story sound more legit, maybe? no? oh well, then whatever...) there was just no way i was going out on NYE... so we opted for a night in - figured we'd cook yummy food instead of spending our time with hundreds of drunk strangers...

our menu consisted of all things tasty without any regard for nutrition, clogged arteries or anything else...

so, i know you are reading and are all 'but i thought this was going to be a recipe for apple crisp?! apples! fruit! healthy!'

and if you want to delude yourself into thinking that anything that contains 1.5 sticks of butter could be healthy, then knock yourself out... but the rest of us, we all know better...

This apple crisp isnt the crispiest of crisps... I actually think a bit less butter - or maybe less incorporation of the crumb topping ingredients - may have made it a bit crispier... but frankly, i didnt care. Warm apple crisp, regardless of crispyness, over vanilla ice cream?

worth all the butter.

Apple Oatmeal Crisp
heavily adapted from Apple Crisp IV - Allrecipes by me

2/3 c flour
1 1/3 c rolled oats
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp ground nutmeg
1/3 tsp allspice
splash of vanilla
3/4 c packed brown sugar
3/4 c butter (1.5 sticks)
5 medium sized macintosh apples (or your favorite baking apple), cut in chunks

***

Preheat oven to 350°

In a large bowl, combine flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice & brown sugar.

Splash in a little vanilla.

Using a pastry blender, 2 knives or your fingers, cut the butter into the mixture until crumbly.

Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of a pie plate or other similarly-sized baking dish
(note - i botched this step. Forgot to add the brown sugar and didnt realize until i'd already put half of the mix into the dish. So i just crumbled 1/2 of the brown sugar over top of the oatmeal mix for the bottom layer. I combined the other half in with the rest of the mixture for the top layer (2 steps ahead))

Put all of the apple on top of the oatmeal mixture and gently press apples down.

Sprinkle the rest of the topping over the apples

Bake for ~ 45 - 50 minutes until topping is golden and apples are tender.

Top with additional cinnamon (if desired) and serve with vanilla ice cream.

May be refrigerated & reheated. (I actually may have liked it a bit better after it spend a day in the fridge...)

Gnocchi Mac & Cheese

2010-12-10T23:00:00.006-05:00

If i'm not mistaken, this was my first home-cooked dinner as someone's wife.

failure - not an option.

When this recipe came across my tumblr dashboard, i immediately sent it off to Jordan. No subject, no commentary, just an email... Why? because he didnt have a choice. this would be dinner...

Now, we did make one compromise - you could be all fancy-like and make your own gnocchi, but we purchased gnocchi from our beloved fairway - a tricolor mix (you know, to make it healthy...) but you'll have to forgive us that one - you see, there was a mouse living in our house (many, actually. they moved in while we were frolicking in paris... damn squatters.) and we didnt want any extra food stuff anywhere... and homemade gnocchi? its messy...

see also: making excuses for laziness...

anyhoo - i'll declare this one a complete success. so much so that i proceeded to tell everyone i spoke to for the next 3 days - "OH MY GOD, you HAVE to make this!!!"

my first dinner as a wife? total WIN.

Gnocchi Mac n' Cheese

courtesy of The Cutting Edge of Ordinary with minor modifications by me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

1 pound tricolor gnocchi
2 Tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk (i think we used 2% but maybe it was skim, since thats what we generally have in the house...)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 heaping cup shredded Comte cheese, packed tight (you can use Gruyere, but the comte & gruyere were the same price and frankly, comte - which is basically france's version of Gruyere - is one of my favorite cheeses, so, duh...)
1/4 heaping cup shredded fontina cheese, packed tight
Salt and white pepper to taste
1/3 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

***

Preheat oven to 375.

Grease 1-1/2 qt shallow baking dish

Prepare gnocchi according to package directions. Drain and place gnocchi in a single-layer in prepared baking dish.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Whisk in flour until it thickens and bubbles, then whisk in milk and Dijon. Continue to whisk mixture and cook until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes.

Combine Comte and fontina, then add by the handful to milk mixture, stirring until melted before adding the next handful. Once all cheese is melted, season sauce with salt and pepper.

Pour sauce over gnocchi and sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano over top. Bake gnocchi until they puff and the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes. Let gnocchi rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Serve with some veggies to balance out all of that cheese and, of course, some crusty bread & wine...

MIA

2010-09-29T10:40:00.000-04:00

Statcounter tells me that our posting spree of last month garnered us some new followers and now we've let you down... but please dont go away!!!

all apologies for the severe lack, but a combination of trader joe's moving in and tempting us with things like kung pao, pad thai & satay noodles, paneer tikki masala and other wonders of frozen food + the final weeks of wedding planning/dieting and well, the food around our house is nothing to document on the internet.

however, this crab pretzel, served up on Sunday at Dover International Speedway, is worth documenting. You can be sure i'll be recreating this at home soon...

I promise there will be more, just bear with us as we take the month of October off from anything not purple, red and low calories...

Heirloom Tomato Salad

2010-08-27T13:55:00.002-04:00

I hate tomatoes.

ok, maybe hate is a strong word but, aside from salsa and pasta sauce, if asked whether i'd like tomatoes or not, i generally vote for not.

But its tomato season. and tomato season + CSA share means it doesnt matter if you like tomatoes or not, you're getting them. Two years ago, i learned to accept grape tomatoes in my life. Last year, i learned to like green tomatoes in eggs (and recently had some fried green tomatoes prepared by ms. raspberry eggplant which were outstanding) but the regular old tomatoes and i still were not friends.

However, this year, the tomatoes are different. Our farm is putting out so many heirlooms that one cannot keep up. In the past, i would have maybe broken them down into sauce or given them away but this year, after reading that our farm's heirlooms were named 2nd best by New York magazine, i wanted to try to take advantage. Now, a couple of weeks ago, the tomatoes we were getting were less than perfect and the meat eater and i were mostly opting to take some green ones to use in the aforementioned eggs. however, this week - this week our tomatoes were so gorgeous that even i, the tomato hater, was impressed.

but you know, 4 lbs of tomatoes is kind of a lot... so i took to twitter to ask the masses - what should i do with these beauties?

my friend Shari was the only one to reply:

my first thought was "cant eat so much cheese! wedding diet!"

my next thought was, "hmm... what if i can learn to like tomatoes so that i can up the tomato-to-cheese ratio?"

and then i went to the gym, just in case i couldnt...

but I also did a bit of reading on tomatoes and learned that i could avoid one of my chief issues with tomatoes by simply slicing & salting them to dry out some of the ick... i figured that would help my cause and give me a much better shot.

i dont know if it was that these tomatoes are just THAT good, or if it was the salting or what, but i seriously LOVED last night's dinner. it was so fresh and just yummy that i'd make it again and again.

which is good, because we still have another 2lbs of tomatoes...

Heirloom Tomato Salad
courtesy of me, though i'm sure you can find this over and over again on the internet

6 cloves garlic, still in their casing
6 medium sized heirloom tomatoes
1/2 bunch fresh basil (leaves only) ~ 1 packed cup
8 oz fresh mozzarella
salt
pepper
~ 1 tbsp olive oil
~ 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

***

Preheat oven to 375°

Place garlic cloves on a piece of aluminum foil (or a baking sheet), drizzle with a teeny bit of olive oil, and roast for ~ 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, slice tomatoes ~ 1/4 inch thick. Place slices on a doubled piece of paper towel. Salt & pepper the tomatoes (you can be fairly generous with your salt & pepper here) and place another doubled paper towel on top of the tomatoes and press down slightly. Leave aside. (note: i'm very tomato liquid adverse - i actually did this twice with a new set of paper towels and a bit more salt & pepper)

Tear or roughly chop basil leaves & set aside.

Once garlic has cooled, remove from casing and chop up a bit.

Cut mozzarella into small bites. (I used cherry sized balls and cut them in half.) Set aside.

Once tomatoes have dried out a bit, cut into smaller, bite sized pieces (i got six pieces out of an average slice) and place in large bowl.

Add mozzarella and toss.

Add basil & roasted garlic to the bowl and toss.

Add olive oil & balsamic vinegar. Toss again.

Salt & pepper to taste.

Serve with crusty baguette.

Note: you may want to mix the roasted garlic, olive oil and balsamic together before incorporating them into the basil & tomatoes as you might find that this helps the garlic incorporate better. our version had some very garlicy bits and other bits that were not as garlicy. totally up to you which you prefer...

Fake Shake Shack Sauce (sort of)

2010-08-24T13:05:00.000-04:00

I'm a condiment whore.

Always have been. I just can't commit.

Back in my single days, my fridge had a few regular items in it: seltzer, beer, and loads of condiments. Ketchup, multiple types of mustards, a couple of mayos, etc. You get the idea.

But I'm also discriminating in my condiment usage. I don't slather ketchup all over everything; I try to keep it judicious, so I don't kill the taste in a pile of sugared-tomato.

While all this is going on, I'm living in the middle of a hamburger revolution, largely spurred by Shake Shack. The length of their lines are legendary. It took me until April 2009, nearly five years after they opened, to get there, mostly because I refused to wait on an hour-long line to get a burger and fries (or much of anything, for that matter). It was only when I found myself in their original Flatiron neighborhood 15 minutes before they were opening for the day (at 11am) and having not eaten breakfast that I finally acquiesced. And I was in love.

Not with the fries, though they are good. Nor with the burger itself, though it really is a very, very good burger. But with the Shack Sauce.

My opinion, whatever it's worth, is that the Shack Sauce is what all the fuss is really about.

So leave it to the guys at A Hamburger Today to get all deconstruct-y on it, both the meat itself and the sauce.

We tried the sauce here in our "test kitchen," and while we though it was great, and faithful to Shake Shack's actual sauce, we decided to make some changes based on our own personal preferences (specifically, lowering the amount of mayo, upping the paprika, and skipping the dill pickles).

And promptly used it all up atop our Baked Black Bean and Corn Burgers. We found that it balanced out the chili powder and cumin really nicely.

So, without further ado...

Kitchen Hell's Modified Fake Shake Shack Sauce
courtesy of The Burger Lab @ A Hamburger Today with modifications by Jordan

1/3 cup mayo
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
rounded/generous 1/4 teaspoon paprika
pinch ground cayenne pepper

***

Mix it all together.

Serve atop whatever you want: burgers (veggie or otherwise), hot dogs, dip your fries in it. Seriously, it's good with just about anything.

Baked Black Bean & Corn Burgers

2010-08-18T18:02:00.001-04:00

Ok readers (all 15 of you...) I'd like to introduce you to the artist formerly know as the Meat-Eater, aka, Jordan.

In the spirit of marriage and sharing, i've decided to give him full-on access to my prized baby blog*.
Since i'm giving him full access, this is the only time you'll see the intro header... aside from our very different writing styles (my overuse of () and ... and his overuse of ,s) you'll have to look at the bottom of the posts to figure out who's sharing.

(*seriously people, this is more significant than sharing a bank account. you're witnessing history here!!!)

Contrary to what might otherwise be said around here, or to how I've been labeled the "Meat-Eater," I don't have a compulsion to eat meat-related products with every single meal. Or even every day of my life.

Last year at some point, we were talking about how most veggie burgers make the mistake of trying to come off like they're made of beef, trying to fake what they really are, and how we really prefer things that don't try to disguise themselves, in this case black bean burgers. Some restaurants use them (either made themselves or frozen-and-bought) as their black bean burgers, and they're almost always better than the fake-meat stuff. So I went on a hunt for black bean burger recipes, and after a few changes we gave it a shot.

And they were good, but spicy as hell.

I like spicy foods, but they were almost too much for me. And they were too much for the other three people who tried them. So we shelved them...

Until last week, when I started talking them up again, and then talked Kristen into letting me give them a shot.

I made a couple of new changes, specifically using a Vidalia onion instead of whatever-we-happened-to-have-around (which usually means yellow or red onions), and it made all the difference. They were immediately declared part of the regular rotation around this place.

Next time up... What they're topped with....

Baked Black Bean & Corn Burgers
courtesy of LAURENMU on Allrecipes.com with modifications by Jordan

1 can black beans
1/3 to 1/2 Vidalia onion (depending on the size of the onion, you can eyeball it)
3 to 4 garlic cloves
1/2 cup corn (drained if you're using canned corn, which is totally fine)
1 egg
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon hot sauce (personally, I use Cholula, but you can use whatever you want)
1/2 cup bread crumbs

***

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Mash the black beans with a fork until they're thick and pasty.

Finely chop the onion and garlic. Stir the onion, garlic, and corn into the mashed beans.

In another bowl, stir together the egg, chili powder, cumin, and hot sauce, then stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans.

Mix in the bread crumbs.

Divide the mixture into four patties, and place on a lined baking sheet.

Bake for 13 minutes, then flip and bake for another 13 minutes.

Serve on a hamburger roll. (In this house, we prefer Martin's Potato Rolls.)

Roasted Corn, Tomato & Garlic Pasta

2010-08-16T10:06:00.001-04:00

As we reach the 2 months-to-the-wedding mark, the meat-eater and i are increasingly on the lookout for quick, healthy dinners. With an abundance of CSA produce in our teeny-tiny fridge (i bet people who dont live in NYC didnt know that fridges come in 2/3 and 3/4 sizes... they do and it SUCKS) we're always looking for ways to use that rather than run out to Fairway. (dont get me wrong, i love fairway. but its patrons? not so much...)

When i saw a post on markbittman.com for Pasta with Grilled Corn & Roasted Garlic, i thought to myself - 'ok, fine, more pasta... but hey, we're getting corn from csa this week...' (in case you couldnt tell, i've wholly embraced pasta-as-a-vehicle-for-veggies this year...) and this looks different - we've had the spicy tomato squash pasta about 5854 weeks in a row and as good as it is, i needed a break...

In the past, the corn from our CSA hasnt been their best output... i'd always blamed it on the fact that i grew up on jersey corn (probably the only thing we ever got from farm stands when i was a kid) and there just was no way that the upstate stuff could compete... That meant that using the corn as a secondary ingredient was generally a decent way to go...

however, this year proved different... we had 3 ears of corn this week so friday night, we busted one open to use in fish tacos (our official beach meal) and realized that it was some seriously excellent corn... which made me even more excited for the roasted corn pasta... which was good, because the meat-eater needed a bit of convincing...

We made a couple of slight changes - added some roasted tomatoes (as we feared they wouldnt last much longer in our overly-warm apartment) and cut a bit of the butter down (wedding dress diets and all...) and ended up with something awesome... This wasnt a savory pasta - the sweetness of the corn and the roasted garlic were fairly awesome with the butter & oil and the parsley - as a general rule, i dont even like parsley but it totally finished this dish off perfectly...

Can you believe we ever doubted Mark Bittman???

Roasted Corn, Tomato & Garlic Pasta

courtesy of markbittman.com with adaptations by me

2 ears corn, husks and silks removed, washed
5 garlic cloves, skins on

4 small tomatoes, seeds and gel removed, cut into pieces
1 generous tablespoon sweet butter, divided

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 box (or pound) pasta
1 cup pasta water
1/2 cup Italian parsley, leaves only, washed, finely chopped

Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

***

Preheat the oven to 350°

Place the ears of corn, garlic cloves & chopped tomatoes on a baking sheet or roasting pan. Keep separated, as they will all be incorporated into the final dish differently. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the entire pan to coat. Season with sea salt and pepper.

Oven roast about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Remove the corn kernels from the cobs and discard the cobs.

Cut off the garlic skins & discard the skins. Roughly chop the roasted garlic and set aside.

Prepare pasta in accordance with directions for al dente pasta.

When draining, reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.

Return the pasta to the still hot pot.

Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, add 1/2 tablespoon sweet butter, season with sea salt and black pepper, stir well, and cover

In a large pan over medium heat, melt together the remaining 1/2 tbsp of sweet butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the roasted garlic to the butter-olive oil mixture. Add 1/2 cup pasta water. Stir well to combine. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally..

Add the corn kernels to the garlic, butter & oil. Stir to combine.

Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Toss to coat.

Incorporate the roasted tomatoes & parsley. Add the remaining pasta water if you want a thinner sauce.

Serve with freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese and a crusty baguette.

Tuna Pasta Salad

2010-08-06T07:00:00.002-04:00

One night last week, we were at a loss. No really money to go out, no desire to cook... Neither of us could decide what we wanted to eat so we sat there, fridge & cupboard open, rattling off everything we saw...

At some point, i turned to the meat eater and said 'tuna pasta salad?' and he was all like, 'ok, whats in it?' and when i mentioned mayo, his response was, 'um, EW?'

and then i realized that tuna pasta salad - one of my favorite things - must be another one of those single behaviours that i didnt even know was strange...

to me, its perfectly logical... tuna salad = good. pasta salad = good. tuna pasta salad = good!

he couldnt think of anything better, so tuna pasta salad it was. ha! forget food pictures, i should have taken a video of his expressions as i was putting it all together... 'wait, you're putting MUSTARD in it?' 'um, what else do we have in the house if this is gross?' 'maybe i should just order something now?'

That first night (oh, because, spoiler alert: we made it twice last week) i made it two ways... His with tomatos and parmesan and mine with celery and feta. I tried both and realized that the feta - not so much... it was fine, but not particularly interesting... kinda just tuna salad with feta and pasta - not so much anything that made it seem cohesive at all...

but the tomatoes & parmesan - now we were talking....

I'll have you all know, the reason we had it twice? oh, cause the skeptical meat-eater? he requested it the second time...

Tuna Pasta Salad
courtesy of me

5 oz pasta of your choice (we made campanelle once and orecchiette the second time. Shells work too.)

2 5oz cans solid white albacore tuna in water, drained
1/4 c light mayo
1 - 2 tsp spicy brown mustard
salt
pepper
garlic powder
onion powder

1 14.5 oz can zesty diced tomatoes, drained

1/4 c grated parmesan

***

Prepare pasta according to directions on pacakge. cool under cold water to stop cooking & cool pasta down. Set aside

Prepare tuna salad - combine tuna, light mayo and spicy brown mustard first. then add salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder to taste. (I like a decent amount of each - a few shakes - but i always start slow and build up because nothing ruins this faster than too much garlic or onion powder...)

Once tuna salad is to your liking (it will most likely be a bit dryer than you usually would eat it), add in the tomatoes & parmesan.

Once all is combined, check the taste again and adjust accordingly. You may find that you still want a bit more mayo or maybe a bit more spice. I generally add a bit more onion and pepper at this point but it all depends on how heavy handed i was to begin with...

Tofu and Orzo with Kale, Carrots and Leeks

2010-08-03T10:10:00.001-04:00

oh kale... how i've mocked you so.
publicly declared my hatred, time and time again.

but i was nothing if not determined to conquer that hatred. figure out what the redeeming factor was. how other people could actually love this awful stuff.

(Yes, i am pretty sure that's a pig you see flying by your window, why do you ask?)

kale - consider yourself pwned.

We've had this twice in 1 week - the equivalent number of times that i'd eaten kale the rest of my entire life. I dont know what was wrong with those first two batches i tried to make because i totally do not hate kale! not even a little bit!

While i'm sad to give up my identity as the kale-hater, i am totally intrigued by all the doors this opens up...

Tofu and Orzo with Kale, Carrots and Leeks
courtesy of On a Lobster Placemat with modifications by me

3/4 cup dry orzo

1/2 package of extra firm tofu, pressed to remove water
1/2 tbsp hot sesame oil
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1.5 tbsp tamari (or soy sauce)
1 tsp siracha sauce (optional)
Salt
Pepper

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp siracha sauce (optional)
3 cloves minced garlic
3 medium carrots, sliced into disks
1 leek, sliced into disks
1 bunch fresh kale, destemmed and torn into small pieces
1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)
1 - 2 tbsp tamari
hot sesame oil

***

Prepare orzo according to package directions (for al dente pasta)

Heat 1/2 tbsp sesame oil, 1/2 tbsp olive oil & 1 tsp siracha in a non-stick pan over medium-low heat.

Add 1.5 tbsp tamari and swish around to mix

Place sliced tofu in pan, adding salt & pepper to taste. (we went for a little salt and a lot of pepper)

While that is cooking, heat remaining olive oil and garlic in another frying pan over medium-low heat..

Let garlic brown a bit and then add the carrots.

Saute for a minute, then add the leeks.

Saute for another minute and then add the kale..

Saute all vegetables until the kale is wilted, tossing often.

Add sesame seeds in and toss some more.

Add orzo in with the vegetables.

Add a 1 - 2 tbsp tamari & a drop more hot sesame oil, if desired, and toss.

Once well combined, remove from heat.

Plate orzo and vegetables and top with tofu.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.

Serves 2.

Three Bean Salad

2010-07-28T06:26:00.001-04:00

Courtesy of someone else's grandma this time...

Last week, part of our CSA share was pole beans. I expected pole beans to be like string beans so when i got to CSA and they looked like this:

(image courtesy of www.fooduniversity.com)

I was a bit surprised.

And had no idea what to do with them... then i googled and was totally unexcited about using them, as most of the links i read told me that they were fiberous and needed a lot of cooking to be edible. (spoiler alert: those links were WRONG! the pole beans were my favorite part of this salad...)

that didnt really sound fun, so i put them aside and hoped for a miracle use to fall into my lap... (given my 'use it all resolve'...)

Then this past week, we got some string beans and some more favas. and frankly, i was sick of favas with pasta so i started asking around... and found out that fellow core member michelle had a great idea - bean salad...

So i asked her more about this bean salad... she had taken her favas (last week featured favas as well) and her pole beans and some other beans she had at home and made a 3 bean salad...

I was intruiged and, frankly, pretty excited to use 3 CSA ingredients all at once! So i looked it up - and had no idea what to do...

a quick email and she gave up her grandma's recipe for bean salad... i didnt even have to bribe her...

We made a few adaptations based on her recommendations and the ingredients we had on hand and, oh, would you look at that? Miracle use for pole beans AND 4 csa ingredients in one dish.

hell yeah.

Three Bean Salad
courtesy of Michelle's grandma with adaptations by me

1 lb fava beans, shelled & blanched
3/4 lbs string beans, cut into 1-2" segments
1/2 lb pole beans, cut into 1-2" segments

1/4 c sugar
1/4 c olive oil
1/3 c red wine vinegar
1 head spring garlic, minced super-fine
salt
pepper

***

Boil a pot of salted water
Once boiling, throw pole beans in.
Allow to cook ~ 3 minutes.

Then throw string beans in with them.
Cook ~ 5 minutes

Then throw prepared favas in with them
Cook ~ 1 more minute.

Drain & run under cold water to stop the beans from cooking.

Whisk sugar, vinegar, olive oil and garlic together.

Once beans are cool, toss dressing with beans, add salt & pepper to taste and serve
*Or*
Refrigerate and allow to 'marinate' for an hour or more & serve cold.

Linguine, roasted squash & spicy garlic tomatoes

2010-07-26T00:14:00.001-04:00

This summer i've been all about the thin pastas... historically, i really couldnt stand spaghetti, linguine, vermicelli or anything else like it. Angel hair had its place cause it was so quick, but aside from that, i was all about the shapes.

for some reason, this summer, all i want is the long, thin stuff...

After a weekend at the beach (a weekend in which i failed to repair tan lines and instead just shifted to new ones...) and a long ride home, we were tempted to order in, but i was thinking of the 3lbs of squash sitting in the crisper and it just seemed silly to not use it... and since sunday is pasta night in this jewish-italian household, the squash & pasta fallback was a natural fit.

In addition to the thin spaghettis, we've also been all about oil & butter-based sauces instead of traditional red sauces this summer - another natural fit for the squash, as i see no need to drown the taste in a ton of traditional red sauce.

This meal was about 10-15 minutes hands on - exactly what we needed on a hot, lazy sunday night.

Linguine, Roasted Squash & Spicy Garlic Tomatoes
courtesy of me & the meat-eater

~1lb assorted squash (we used zucchini & patty pan)
1 tbsp olive oil
salt
garlic powder
black pepper

1/3 box thin pasta of your choice

3/4 tbsp olive oil
3/4 tbsp butter
3-4 cloves of garlic
1/2 can of zesty diced tomatoes
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

ricotta (optional)
parmesan (optional)

***

Preheat oven to 375

Cut squash into bite size pieces. Place on cookie sheet & toss with a bit of olive oil, salt, garlic powder & a generous amount of black pepper.

Roast for ~20 minutes, tossing again once.

Just after the squash goes into the oven, begin the water boiling for the pasta.
Cook pasta al dente, according to directions on box.

Just as you throw the pasta in to cook, put olive oil & butter in a pan over medium heat. While its heating, chop the garlic into small pieces.

Once butter is melted, throw garlic into the pan & cook until a bit browned.
Lower the heat slightly and stir in tomatoes.
Simmer for about 5 minutes or until most of the liquid has cooked down, but just before you turn it off, shake in a little bit of crushed red pepper, mix it around and then turn it off.

Just as the sauce is finishing, the squash should be roasted and the pasta should be drained and waiting.

Plate pasta, put squash over top of pasta and top with tomatoes.

Add a spoonful of ricotta, a sprinkling of parmesan, a hunk of crusty baguette & a glass of white wine and you've got yourself a sunday night :)

(serves 2)

Tuna Salad Lettuce Wraps

2010-07-20T14:44:00.001-04:00

my poor grandma J... she HATED to cook.

If she's reading this, she's rolling her eyes at me and wondering why in the world i would post any of her recipes...

but thats the funny thing about Grandma J - she hated to cook but she always did a pretty good job of it... which was a good thing, because she had this theory - if she bothered to cook it, you better bother to eat it.

Also as a result of her hatred of all things cooking, she was a devout recipe-follower... she didnt want to think, didnt want to experiment - just wanted to spend as little time and thought as possible on getting food that people would eat onto the table.

I was never reminded of this so much as i was when we would spend a week at the beach with her... we'd get these little bungalows and spend our days on the beach & evenings in the arcade. Nowadays, vacations (for me) include eating as a big part of them. But back then, eating was an afterthough... but it apparently made an impression none-the-less...

You see, a few weeks ago, the meat eater and i had good fortune combine and there was an available weekend coupled with an available beachfront condo... the only thing we didnt have was an actual fortune, so we accepted the condo and figured we'd cook all weekend...

i immediately wanted tuna with celery & lettuce on toasted wheat bread for lunch.

because thats what we always ate for lunch at the beach.

My typical tuna needs are much easier - no celery chopping, no lettuce garnish - hell, half of the time there isnt even bread... but the beach calls for something much more specific.

Since we've returned from the beach, i've held onto my need to have celery in my tuna salad (something which makes the meat eater gag - good thing he wasnt around grandma - she would have made him eat it!!!) and last week, combined my version of the beach tuna salad with lettuce leaves as wraps. because good god have we gotten a lot of lettuce from the CSA and really, there are only SO MANY dinner salads a girl can have...

see what i did there?
More CSA usage, FTW!

Tuna Salad in Lettuce Wraps
Inspired by Grandma J

1 can albacore tuna in water, drained
2 tbsp light mayo
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
1 celery rib, diced
salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder (to taste)

6 large leaves red or green romaine lettuce

***

Combine first 4 ingredients
Taste and then season with more mayo, more mustard, salt, pepper, garlic and/or onion poweder, to taste (i generally do a shake of each one)

divide tuna between lettuce leaves and roll up

Pat yourself on the back for using CSA ingredients in non-obvious way.

Garlic Soba Noodles

2010-07-13T13:47:00.004-04:00

backstory:
I hate chard. i hate kale. i hate these items so much that i've become legendary among some of the CSA members (ok, the core group cause we all talk. a lot.) in my hatred.
Last season, i even had a standing deal with another girl - i'd always leave behind my greens and she could always have them.

this, my friends, is the best example i can give you to show how dedicated we are to using as much of the CSA produce as possible...

DED-I-CAT-ED.

this is the year i'm going to learn to like kale, chard and all that other crap that i cannot stand...

(and yes, i've tried to make kale chips and no, i dont like them. and yes, i've tried to saute with butter, oil, garlic, whatever and no, i dont like it...)

Its kind of amazing, this 'we're using it ALL, dammit' initiative... i mean, our fridge is only 3/4 of the way full today. and CSA isnt even until tomorrow... i cant tell you the last time that happened...

anyway, moving on...

someone posted this to our google distribution list (i think...) and i figured well, no time like the present...

(sorry for this picture - clearly i forgot how to use my camera when photographing this one!)

the miracle of it? i actually liked it. as in, 'would make it again, i'm sorry that we didnt get chard last week'... as in, my only complaint about the dish wasnt "ick, chard!" rather was - 'hmm, i think that tofu needs some more flavor next time...' (suggestions welcome, by the way...)

Garlic Soba Noodles
courtesy of 101 Cookbooks, minor mods by me

8 ounces dried soba noodles

3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
big pinch of salt
pepper
12 ounces extra firm organic tofu, cut into 6 rectangular slabs
2 eggs, lightly beaten

a generous splash of olive oil
a few spring onions, greens trimmed, thinly sliced
1 head spring garlic, minced
4 big handfuls of swiss chard - destemmed and cut into bite-sized pieces

1/2 cup grated Parmesan, divided

a few baby radishes, sliced thin

***

Preheat oven to 375°

Combine the bread crumbs, 1/3 c of the parmesan, salt & some pepper in a shallow dish.
Dunk pieces of tofu in the egg and then press into the bread crumb mixture, making sure each piece is thoroughly coated with crumbs.

Place pieces on parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake in oven, flipping once. Baking will take 30 - 45 minutes, depending on the thickness of your tofu and your personal tofu texture issues. At a minimum, breading should be golden. (I like mine cooked longer than some others as i cannot stand mushy tofu...)
Slice into strips and set aside.

Cook soba noodles according to instructions or until just tender. Drain and set aside.

Add the olive oil and bit of salt (if desired) to a large skillet over med-high heat.
Stir in the green onions, chard and garlic and cook for a minute until the chard begins to wilt.

Stir in the cooked soba noodles. Stir in the remaining parmesan. Remove from heat.

Sprinkle with sliced radishes.

Serve noodles with slices of tofu over top.

Orecchiette with Scallops, Favas & Spring Peas

2010-07-09T10:18:00.003-04:00

the ongoing quest to use up as much of our CSA share as possible is doing fairly well, given who you're looking at here... there's been tons of salads, an experiment with my least-favorite thing - chard - that i actually liked, mint-gingerade, etc etc. Not everything is a winner, nor are the recipes all mind-blowing but some are and also? i'm going to assume that its no coincidence that i've lost a few lbs since CSA began this year...

Its been HOTTER than hell in NYC this week, so when i polled my twitter friends to see what i should eat for dinner on tuesday, my friend roopa mentioned that she was making orecchiette, favas & peas from her own CSA share.

do you know how excellent it is to have a friend who is a good cook AND is one day ahead of you on CSA pickup?

I highly recommend it.

Anyway, wednesday comes around and i'm still thinking of Roopa's idea and then i see that Mark Bittman's personal site has a guest post from someone also using pasta, favas & peas...

If both of my go-to sources are pimping out similar recipes, it must be the thing to make, right?

So i called up the meat-eater and asked him to take a quick inventory of our cabinets/fridge/freezer. turned out that we could make up our own version of this with minimal purchases... I'm not always so brave when it comes to that but, as the meat eater always reminds me, worst case scenario? we just order in.

In all the times he's said that, we havent had to do it yet...

Orecchiette with Scallops, Favas & Spring Peas
courtesy of me (inspired by Raspberry Eggplant & Mark Bittman)

Note: Many, many modifications could me made to this recipe based on what you have at home (see the inspiration links above) and i think you'd still end up with something excellent! Not the least of those being that you could eliminate the scallops and be totally vegetarian friendly... Not to mention that, if you were cooking for a veg & a non-veg, it would be super-simple to prepare it half & half...

2 c dry orecchiette

1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil

1lb bay scallops

1.5 tbsp mint pesto
1.5 tbsp garlic scape pesto

1lb shelled favas (shelling tutorial)
1/2lb shelled peas (shelling tutorial)

salt
pepper
Parmesan cheese
***

Shell the favas & peas & set aside.

Prepare orecchiette according to directions on the box, leaving just slightly al dente. Reserve 1/4 c of the pasta water

Heat a olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat
Add the scallops & add pepper to taste.
Cook scallops until just about 3/4 done (cooked scallops are completely opaque, so make sure you dont let them get that far yet).
Carefully drain the liquid out of the pan so that the pan is mostly dry. (you will need to do this as the scallops will have released water and you will have more liquid in the pan than will allow for any browning)
Turn the heat up to medium-high, add the butter, and saute the scallops until you just see a tiny bit of browning on the edges. be careful to not over-cook.

Remove scallops from pan and set aside.

Lower heat to just shy of medium and add the peas & favas. Add a bit of olive oil if you dont think the pan has enough liquid left over from the scallops to prevent the favas & peas from sticking.
saute for ~2 - 3 minutes.
Lower heat to medium and put orecchiette, scallops & both kinds of pesto in the pan & toss until combined.
Add a bit of the reserved pasta water if your pesto is on the thick side (optional)

Plate & top with parmesan & more pepper, if desired.

Shrimp with Mint Pesto & Quinoa

2010-06-22T13:55:00.002-04:00

there is no clever title, no play on words...

I know i've said this before, but this year, i'm dedicated to trying to be a better CSA participant...

No, really. stop laughing. i mean it!

this is the first blog installment of 'things i was skeptical of but made anyway just cause otherwise the ____ was going to go bad and big nicks is only a phone call away if it sucks'

lucky for us, it didnt suck. in fact, i think that we might even buy mint one day, just to make it again. easy, fresh, fairly healthy... what could be better?

Shrimp with Mint Pesto & Quinoa
courtesy of Bon Appétit, via Epicurious, modifications by me

(The original recipe was written to be an appetizer, but after a tiny bit of tweaking, was super-easy to turn into a meal.)

3/4 c quinoa, rinsed
1 1/2 c water

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1 head spring garlic, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons (packed) Parmesan cheese
1/2 tablespoon coarsely chopped jalapeño chile
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cups (packed) fresh mint leaves
1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/6 cup extra-virgin olive oil

12 large uncooked shrimp (about 1 pound), peeled, deveined, tails left intact (note: our lb of shrimp had about 20 shrimps in it!)
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 head spring garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

***

For quinoa:
Bring water to a boil
Add quinoa, reduce heat to simmer.
Cover & cook for 20 mins, stirring occasionally to ensure it is not burning to the bottom of the pan

For mint pesto:
Combine first 6 ingredients in processor. Using on/off turns, process until mixture is smooth.
Add mint leaves and lemon juice; process until smooth, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl.
Add oil and process until mint pesto is smooth and creamy.
(Can be made 1 day ahead; cover and refrigerate.)

For shrimp:
Preheat broiler.
Sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper.
Whisk oil, garlic, and parsley in medium bowl to blend.
Add shrimp; toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes.
Arrange shrimp in single layer on broiler pan.
Broil until opaque in center, about 2 minutes per side. (note: we left ours in for about 5-6 minutes. but i'm also the person who, despite knowing better, orders tuna cooked well... so, yeah...)

Braised Chickpeas & Spinach

2010-05-14T12:11:00.003-04:00

(formerly known as miss congeniality)

A couple of weeks ago, I attended the bachelorette party of a friend from work. She'd decided to take a slightly different route with the party plans - no penis straws, strippers or pole dancing classes - instead we'd be heading to Rustico cooking for a hands-on cooking class, lots of wine & a 3 course meal.

Kim (the bachelorette) got to set the menu and in a group of 16, you can imagine that meat wins out as the main course. I was fine with this - i've made a meal of 'sides' more times than i care to think about - but the lovely ladies at Rustico asked if anyone was vegetarian and since i was the only one, i figured they'd just make sure that i got extra butternut squash raviolis or something... However, when the ravioli came out and i got the same portion as everyone else, i just figured i was in for extra broccoli and potatoes. No biggie, but when another friend offered up her leftover ravioli, i said sure... When they came to clear the plates, they mentioned that they'd made something else for me as a main meal... Cool! what was it? Chickpeas. oh...

I'm not always a chickpea fan - sure, i like hummus as much as the next guy, but plain chickpeas had never really been my thing, so i held onto those extra ravioli anyway... figured i'd choke down a few chickpeas but that would be it.

never did i imagine i'd end up not only finishing every last one, but then, two days later, emailing them to get the recipe...

this dish - while not particularly attractive - is incredibly healthy and wildly yummy. it accomplishes all of those things a good vegetarian dish should - its not trying to be something its not (meat) and it uses spices to bring out the flavors in an otherwise bland main ingredient. it went so well with the broccoli and potatoes (at the class) that the meat-eater and i decided to leave well-enough alone and make similar sides at home... in the end, this is one of those super-easy, super-yummy, super-healthy dishes that is sure to find a permanent place in our rotation.

Braised Chickpeas & Spinach
Courtesy Rustico Cooking with slight modifications by me

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
pinch crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
2/3 medium yellow onion, minced
2 tsp chopped Italian parsley
2 tsp chopped oregano

7 grape tomatoes, halved
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch freshly ground black pepper

3 cups slightly packed baby spinach
2/3 cup vegetable broth

***

Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a heavy 2-quart pot over a medium flame. Add the chili flakes, garlic, onion, parsley, and oregano, and cook 5 minutes, or until soft.

Stir in the tomatoes, chickpeas, salt, and pepper, and cook for 5 minutes.
Add the spinach and the broth and cover; lower the heat to medium-low.

Simmer 1 hour, or until very tender, stirring once in a while and checking to make sure there is always a bit of liquid in the pot.

If the sauce is too liquid when the chickpeas are ready to serve, uncover and reduce over medium-high heat.

Serve hot, drizzled with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. <- super important step!!!

Heirloom Tomato Sauce

2010-05-12T12:15:00.004-04:00

(formerly titled 'getting the italian out')

in less than 6 months (crap, only a few days longer than 5 months!), i'll be married. that is not so shocking to me as i think that i already feel married to the meat-eater... however, what is shocking to me is that, assuming i change my name (which is the current plan), i'll be losing a huge chunk of my identity. the identity that, despite being 1/4 irish and 1/4 english, has always been italian.

With that in mind, i'm going to make the most of these final months as an italian-girl-from-central-new-jersey(yes like the jersey shore kids)-who-used-to-work-at-merry-go-round(omg! those cavariccis go SO well with that IOU sweatshirt!!!! yes i work on commission, why do you ask?)-and-drive-a-mustang-with-louvers-and-a-big-fat-oakley-sticker-on-it and see if i can manage to live up to every stereotype that identity deserves.

so this is another tomato sauce recipe... because what italian girl doesnt have at least 5 of these up her sleeve?

this one was created from a fairly innocent place though - no sopranos wannabe moments or anything - just the fact that winter CSA included lots and lots of farm-jarred items, the best of them being heirloom tomato puree. which is way too good to just throw over angel hair and too delicate to poach eggs in. This recipe seems to really highlight the awesomeness that is that puree.

Heirloom Tomato Sauce

courtesy of me

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

2 - 3 cloves of garlic - minced

pinch or two of crushed red pepper (optional)

1 jar (24 oz) heirloom tomato puree (if you can get it from Norwich Meadows Farm, you should!)

2 tbsp tomato paste (do not use the double-concentrate stuff - its too strong for the heirloom puree)

salt & pepper

***

Place olive oil, butter, minced garlic and pinch of red pepper (if using) in heavy pan over low heat.

Saute for 10-12 minutes, watching to ensure that garlic doesnt burn.

Once garlic starts to turn a bit brown and oil/butter are well combined, remove from heat and pour in tomato puree.

Add salt & pepper to taste.

Return to heat and turn up a bit to med-low, bring to a simmer and simmer for ~ 5 - 10 mins.

Stir in tomato paste.

Continue to simmer about 20 mins, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened a bit.

2 point microwave cake for one

2010-04-30T11:07:00.001-04:00

(formerly titled 'SSB for two*')

I seriously hate hate hate to quote sex and the city - so cliche! - yet sometimes, its the only way to express my thoughts on something... but this truly is one of those things that should probably fall into the category of Secret Single Behaviour...

(this could also be called 'science experiment' or 'myth busters' or whatever other terms one could use for testing something found on the internet that seems too good to be true...)

somewhere along the way, i stumbled upon this recipe for '2 pt cake for 1'... (the internet tells me its originally from http://www.skinnytaste.com/, but i cannot find it on that site, so i'm not sure...)
first we see the tell-tale points in the title meaning we're dealing with weight watchers (i'm a lifetime ~~failure~~ member, so know these things immediately...) which, um, the reason i left WW? to eat real food instead of packaged chemicals and to avoid things like splenda being in everything i ate... so i'm already skeptical.

then i read said recipe. and now i'm REALLY skeptical... i figure that, at best, this is going to fall somewhere between easy-bake oven cake and that crappy experiment that was microwave cake a number of years back. neither of which is promising.

however, thats why i'm here and why i'm blogging - to tell you that this far exceeded my expectations. that this actually isnt half bad! i had the recipe sitting on our table long enough to intrigue the meat eater enough that he went out and purchased the ingredients so that we could try it sooner rather than later...

i know enough WW-math to know that 2 points of something like this cake is somewhere in the vicinity of 100 calories which is something that even I can fit into my diet most days... and on a good day, it even leaves a bit of wiggle room to add a tablespoon of cream cheese frosting to it...

our low expectations caused us to only make one serving of it (making this '2 pt cake for 2') but we didnt end up throwing away the rest of the mix as i had guessed that we might (which would have made this a $6.00 shitty cupcake) but i'd love to figure out how long to microwave two of them at one time, cause i can assure you this will be made again.

*this isnt a relationship blog, but you have to admit, the best ones are when you get to share your secret single behaviours, dont you think?

2 point microwave cake for one
courtesy of the internet, possibly originating from skinnytable.com

For the mix:
1 box red velvet (or any other flavor) cake mix
1 box angel food cake

***

Combine thoroughly in a ziplock bag or other seal-able container

To make the cake:
1/4 cup of the mix (above)
2 tbsp water
frosting (optional - this adds another point or two, if you are counting)

***

Combine mix and water into a microwave safe mug (one of the ones that are glazed inside work best)
Stir until well combined to avoid cake-mix lumps
Microwave 1 minute on high.
Gently run a butterknife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the sides then invert mug over to release cake onto a plate

Add a tablespoon of cream cheese (or other) frosting, if desired (the meat eater prefers it plain)

Veggie/Fish/Bean Tacos

2010-04-27T15:18:00.004-04:00

(formerly titled 'backwards recipe makeover')

so, you know how there are whole sites - whole industries - devoted to making unhealthy recipes less unhealthy and more ~~boring~~ healthy?

this is not one of those sites.

oh no - around here, its all about taking something healthy and making sure to load it up with as much ~~garbage~~ awesome stuff as humanly possible.

take real simple's vegetarian tacos. 355 calories per serving. until we got our hands on it...

first, it was "is just the tofu enough protein?" the meat eater suggested maybe not... and we went to our protein standby and said - 'ok, lets add some black beans. we love black beans!' and then i thought for another minute or so and said 'ooh - i know what else - broiled tilapia!!!' (have i mentioned my recent seafood/broiler obsession? its real and its out of control...) and then i looked at all of that and thought - 'this is missing something... ooh - ooh - i know! Avocado!' and that - that right there - turned this from a 355 calorie per serving meal into something WAY more caloric. (this is why i have nightmares about long white dresses that dont fit...)

We've made it a few times since - though, thats actually an unfair statement, since we dont even use the tofu or the spinach anymore... so maybe its safer to say we make fish tacos with corn a lot these days???

either way, this recipe is kinda like the confetti quiche that i posted so long ago - inspiration for whatever your taco desires are - fish, tofu, bean or otherwise...

Veggie/Fish/Bean Tacos
significantly adapted by me from Real Simple

2 tilapia filets (~3/4 lb)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 14-ounce package extra-firm tofu—drained, patted dry, and crumbled
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
kosher salt and black pepper

1 10-ounce package frozen corn (2 cups), thawed
1 14.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

4 loosely packed cups baby spinach
8 small flour tortillas, warmed
3/4 cup crumbled fresh goat cheese (3 ounces)
1 avocado, diced
3/4 cup store-bought refrigerated salsa or jalapeño diced tomatoes

***

Preheat broiler

Lightly grease a broiler pan and lay tilapia filets down. Brush lightly with olive oil.
Broil ~ 6 – 8 minutes or until tilapia flakes when pierced with a fork.
When cooked through, remove from broiler and break into pieces.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tofu, chili powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.

Add the corn & beans and cook, tossing, until heated through, about 2 minutes.

Add the spinach and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper and toss until wilted.

Line tortillas with tilapia and the tofu mixture.
Top with goat cheese, avocado and salsa.

why is the sky blue? / Fat Girl Red Rice

2010-04-14T15:56:00.006-04:00

no, this post has nothing to do with the sky, but since most of my visitors come from the google search for 'can you reheat pancakes?', i figured i'd pick another common phrase to make some more friends...

so while this has nothing to do with the sky, it IS color related - its about fat girl red rice... and i'll explain to you why its red! - tomatoes!!!

wow, that was quick and useless, huh?

anyway... its another hit from the fantastic mad hungry: feeding men & boys... (and probably the only other one i'll post lest i end up in jail for posting recipes that are not really mine...) another easter-eve success and another frequent repeat-offender in our household.

this recipe is so named 'fat girl' because Ms Quinn found herself unable to leave it be and picked on too much of it prior to serving... this is a concept well-documented in my life, hence my current diet to become un-fat-girled...

luckily, despite the impression the name gives, this rice isnt so bad for you - really only marginally more caloric than traditional white rice - its just that whole portion control thing that you have to keep in check to avoid the fatness... (our house is super-fun right now what with all of the dieting and calorie tracking. I apologize for allowing it to spill onto the blog but sometimes you just have to write about the life you are living, you know?)

Fat Girl Red Rice
courtesy of Mad Hungry: Feeding Men & Boys with minor adaptations by the meat eater

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 onion, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced

2 cups long grain white rice

6 oil-packed sundried tomato halves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon coarse salt

3 cups vegetable broth

***
Heat a medium pot over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and garlic. Cook and stir until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the rice and stir to toast it and coat it with the oil, about 90 seconds.

Stir in the sundried tomatoes, tomato paste, and salt. Stir and cook to fully incorporate, about 1 minute.

Add the vegetable broth. Raise the heat to high, bring to a boil, and lower the heat to allow the rice to briskly simmer until holes form on top of it, about 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat to very low, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and serve.

Note: when there are only two of us, we generally halve the recipe and still have more than enough.

Soy and Ginger Teriyaki Salmon

2010-04-08T12:20:00.008-04:00

(formerly titled 'delivery on a promise')

a month or two ago I waxed poetic about Mad Hungry: Feeding Men & Boys and how useful that little cookbook really was... and I promised the salmon recipe... a recipe we've made more times than i can count since then - most recently as Easter-eve dinner this past Saturday...

We were not slated to cook dinner the night before easter, but my family and I sat there thinking about what we should have (eat in? go out?) and couldnt come up with a good answer. The meat-eater suggested maybe we could make the salmon. salmon he'd already eaten twice that week but was up for again...

Now, because we were in North Carolina with no prior plans to cook said meal and because i'm a bad foodblogger and hadnt already posted the recipe, we had to spend 20 minutes driving to the nearest B&N to find the book and take an iphone pictureof the recipe. (which, in my book, is not wrong when you own the book already...)

Turned out to be totally worth it. My mother - who NEVER cooks actually asked for the recipe... That, my friends, is a ringing endorsement...

Soy & Ginger Teriyaki Salmon
courtesy of Mad Hungry: Feeding Men & Boys

1 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 inch fresh ginger, peeled & sliced into disks
3 garlic cloves, smashed

2 pounds boneless salmon fillet, pin bones removed
(note - when its just 2 of us, we halve the marinade and buy just under a pound of salmon...)

***

Whisk the soy sauce, honey, and lemon juice together in a large enough dish to fit the salmon.

Stir in the ginger and garlic.

Place the salmon, skin side up, in the sauce and marinate for at least 10 or up to 30 minutes.

Preheat a broiler.

Remove the salmon from the marinade, pat it dry with paper towels, and place it skin side down on an oiled roasting pan. (we use the disposable ones because the glaze just BURNS on. if you dont want to be so wasteful, just line yours with aluminum foil...)

Cook until it is slightly firm to the touch, 10 to 15 minutes, depending on thickness. While the salmon is cooking, brush it a couple of times with the marinade. (note - we do this about every 3 minutes or so for the first couple of times and then every 1-2 minutes or so when we are nearing the end)
You'll know its done when the glaze starts to get crispy and crunchy and burn onto the roasting pan.

Immediately remove the skin while the fish is hot.

I'm italian, so what i'm about to say must be true

2010-03-30T11:46:00.002-04:00

i have the best tomato sauce recipe ever.

sorry grandma, but this stuff? this stuff that i did NOT spend all day and night cooking? its the best i've ever had.

I threw it together based on a recipe i saw on Sarah Nett and a roasted tomato soup i made a while back and oh.my.god. i want to marry this sauce...

(ironically, i didnt think it was the best match for the carrot gnocchis because it was just a bit too flavorful and they need something a bit lighter, but its the best for everything else i've ever had, ever.)

can you tell i'm in love? seriously - I might have to break up with the meat eater so that i can be legally united with this sauce next october instead of him. (sorry kid. but how does Mrs. Kristen Tomatosauce sound?)

it took less than 5 minutes to prep, 45 to roast and then another 2 to process. and thats it.
do yourself a favor - grab a couple of mason jars and get ready to save the leftovers because you arent going to want to waste any of it... (see suggestion for faux-parm at the bottom of the recipe)

Roasted Tomato Sauce
Courtesy of me

1 large can (28 oz) crushed San Marzano tomatoes
1 small onion - chopped
4 - 5 cloves of garlic - crushed and halved
dried basil
dried oregano
salt
pepper
~3 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven 450°

Spread crushed tomatoes (including juices) on lightly greased roasting pan
Sprinkle onion and garlic pieces around evenly
Shake basil and oregano over the top. There should be enough that you can clearly see both and still clearly be able to see all of the other ingredients too
Salt and pepper based on your tastes (i like both, so i was pretty generous)
Drizzle olive oil over top of the tomatoes. Not every spot needs to be covered and the oil should never be thick. i slowly drizzled it back and forth, olive oil 'rows' about an inch or so apart.

Roast in the oven for ~45 minutes.

Once it is done, remove from oven and grab the pureeing apparatus of your choice (I used an immersion blender, but you could use a regular blender, food processor, mini-chopper - all would probably work fine) and process the sauce to your desired consistency. I like a chunkier sauce so i only barely processed it - just enough to break up and chunks of onion or garlic but still leave me with some nice tomato pieces.

Serve over pasta.

Or, on a short-for-time night, use over top of chicken patties (real or vegetarian) with some mozzarella to make a quick faux-parm. (<- last night at my house, thankyouverymuch! :) )

vegetables without even trying

2010-03-29T02:00:00.013-04:00

Last month one of those stupid girly magazines that i feel the need to buy had some diet tricks in it. Most of them are things you've either heard before or would never do, but there was one that stuck in my head and that i actually ripped out and hung on the fridge - fill half of your plate with veggies.

Its a great idea, really. Veggies are good for you. and they have less calories than most other food. double bonus. so any time we cook now, we think about this - how much of our plate will be vegetables? If it isnt enough we automatically add a salad in to the meal.

So, why am i telling you this? mostly cause its backstory...

Front-story... so winter CSA is always interesting. I'm actually liking this year a lot - the assortment of stuff we've been getting has been pretty kitchen-hell friendly and we've come up with some great recipes to use stuff like the heirloom tomato puree. Sure, there's still stuff that we forget about and bury in the back of the fridge until something starts to smell but baby-steps, ok?

so anyway, last month we got some carrots. something like 4 lbs of carrots. add that to the pound or so that we still had in the fridge from the month before and we were pretty much overrun... given that we're mostly green vegetable eaters, we just dont always think of the carrots but they're a stupid thing to waste and so i made it a mission to find some carrot recipes. So a couple of weeks back, i stumbled across My Culinary Sanctuary - Sarah Nett and found a recipe for roasted carrot gnocchi. sounded interesting - sounded different - and certainly would use some carrots. score.

Since sundays are pasta night around here, the meat eater suggested we do the gnocchis this weekend (yes, technically not pasta... get over it)... After i spent most of the day breaking and fixing my brand new bike, we were finally ready to tackle them. only i kept wondering what vegetable we should make to have on the side. and then realizing how completely idiotic that statement was, only to forget and wonder about it again 15 minutes later.

stupid glamour article!

Roasted Carrot Gnocchi
Adapted by me from Sarah Nett

Note: you're going to have doubts while making this. we did. right up until the part where we roll the gnocchi out and cut them up and realized we had about 32 pieces. Which isnt a ton but is enough for a light dinner for two if served with enough bread, wine and maybe a salad - you know, to make sure you get more veggies...

3/4 pound carrots, peeled and chopped into pieces

1- 2 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons butter, divided in half
2-3 tablespoons onion, minced

5 tablespoons flour + a bit more on reserve
1 egg
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese + a bit more on reserve
Pinch of nutmeg

Pinch of salt
Fresh black pepper

Preheat oven to 400.

Spread carrots over a cookie sheet and lightly coat them with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired. Roast at 400 until carrots are soft and caramelized (about 30 - 40 minutes). Set aside to cool.

While carrots are roasting, put 2 tablespoons of the butter and all the chopped onion in a medium skillet and turn on the heat to medium. Saute onion about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in remaining butter. Set aside.

At this point, put a large pot of salted water on the stove and turn on high. (this is how you'll cook the gnocchi)

Once carrots and onions/butter are both ready and cool enough to handle, place all into a food processor and puree.

Remove carrot/onion mixture from food processor and place in a bowl.

Mix in flour, egg, parmesan, nutmeg, salt and pepper.

It should now be a wet dough. If you cannot pick it up and make a ball, add more flour and more parmesan, in equal parts, 1/2 tablespoon each at a time. (note: we added one more tablespoon each of flour and parmesan at this point)

Remove from the bowl and place it onto a floured surface. (If you live in an apartment with a tiny coutertop, you may need to split the dough into 1/2s or 1/3rds at this point)

Roll dough out into long tubes, about 3/4 of an inch thick. Using a floured butter knife, cut into pieces, about 1 inch long each. Either roll under a fork to get the typical gnocchi markings or just push your index finger in to make a little divot. (The ridges are only there to hold sauce and a finger divot works just fine...)

Once you have cut all of your gnocchi, carefully drop into boiling water. When they float to the top, time for one minute longer and then remove with a slotted spoon. (we did this in batches as our pan is small)

Top with a light tomato sauce (though i think brown butter and sage would ROCK on these as well) and more parmesan, if desired, and serve with crusty baguette.

Just as impressive as fried.

2010-03-12T18:39:00.005-05:00

Many moons ago, i declared that everyone should have a meal that they make that impresses people. Mine was crab cakes. If you asked me today, i'd still say it was crab cakes. However, just a few weeks ago, the meat-eater and i realized that despite our 1.5 year relationship, i'd never made him my famously impressive crabcakes.

and yet he still proposed 8 months ago. shocking, i know.

Last weekend seemed like a good time to remedy the situation, but with both of us on pre-wedding diets, fried crab cakes just were not in calorie budget. So i took that old tried & true recipe and started looking around to figure out how i could convert it to a baked dish to save on the oil used in frying calories...

it actually wasnt that hard and by the time i was done cobbling recipes together, i ended up with some super yummy, super easy and super low cal crab cakes! score!

Now that i think about it, if you wanted to save a few more calories, you could probably just use egg whites, but at 70 calories per crab cake, do you really need to?

Baked Crab Cakes
courtesy of me

5 tbsp panko (or plain bread crumbs)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp parsley (dried)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/4 tsp cayenne

1/4 cup light mayo (not miracle whip!)
1 tbsp melted butter
2 eggs
1/4 cup carrot (minced)
1/4 cup onion (minced)
1/2 tsp worcestershire

1 lb crab

***

Preheat oven to 350°
Line baking sheet with parchment (if desired - makes for easier cleanup!)

Mix first 8 items (dry items)
Mix next 6 items separately
Combine dry and wet mixes
Add in crab meat and mix

Form into 12 patties
Place in oven at 350 for 15 minutes
Flip
Place back in oven for another 15 minutes

Note: i saw a suggestion to make them in a muffin pan, so i did. While it did work well to make them even, they stuck. A LOT. even with a huge saturation of olive oil cooking spray. So you can take that route, but i think that, in the future, i'll just form patties and use the cookie sheet instead.

Book Review: Mad Hungry - Feeding Men & Boys

2010-01-28T10:15:00.001-05:00

the Meat-Eater's birthday was last saturday but as of last thursday, i still didnt have any presents for him. I tried, in vain, to get him some cool shoes but the store had closed at 645. 645! who closes at such a random & early time???

anyway, after meeting a friend for drinks, i decided to stop at the bookstore and pick him up some books on writing - a favorite past time of his... not the greatest present but it was something and at that point, anything was better than what i had, so...

so i mentioned drinks, right? i know that in the rest of the country you have to worry about drinking and driving, but here in NYC, drinking & shopping is way more dangerous (cause, you know, we walk everywhere and stores? they are everywhere and most of them are open late. save for that stupid shoe store...)

so anyway, you are getting the picture here. drunk girl, desperate for birthday present (and lets be honest, a bathroom at that point). So first i headed off towards the bathrooms so that i could shop in comfort. on my way, i happen to pass by the cook book table... uh oh. mental note to stop back here because, i mean, we only have like 42154 cookbooks - we TOTALLY need another one, right?

so along with a gift card & a book on writing, i walk out with Mad Hungry: Feeding Men and Boys by Lucinda Scala Quinn.

When i woke up sober, i wondered if this was really an appropriate birthday present for the M-E, as it was really written for moms & wives of cavemen, but i figured what the heck, it was one more thing for him to open on his b-day and i was going to keep it either way cause the recipes looked good...

Turns out it was a GREAT birthday present! He spent some time yesterday flipping through it looking for something that would meld with my pescatarian ways and in the end, we decided on Teriyaki Salmon & Rice Pilaf. We added some roasted asparagus to the mix (admittedly, i over-roasted) and had one of the most 'adult' meals we've had in a long time and the whole thing, start to finish, couldnt have taken more than an hour...

One of the great things about the book is that not only does she provide pretty easy recipes but also makes suggestions for using the leftovers... which caused us to make a VERY large amount of that rice pilaf so that we could take her up on some of those leftover suggestions... like, 2 quarts worth of leftovers. oops.

We've got at least 3 more recipies on our near-future radar and i believe that last nights meal will become part of the regular rotation.

Pictures & Recipes for the Salmon & the Rice Pilaf to follow. eventually.

tiny kitchen tricks

2009-11-29T14:32:00.002-05:00

one of the biggest problems with cooking in a teeny-tiny kitchen (manhattan or otherwise) is counter space. aside from not having room to knead, roll, measure, stir - there's no where to put a recipe and not have it end up destroyed by the end.

many people organize their internet-based recipes in binders and i'm no exception... a quick trip to staples and a purchase of some sheet protectors and a binder and you are set and ready to go. As soon as a recipe is deemed sheet-protector-worthy, into the binder it goes. this serves to not only hold the recipes but also allows you to pull one out and put it on the counter - the sheet protector is easily cleaned off with a sponge and your recipe stays nice for next time.

on thanksgiving, this problem is compounded by the fact that you have 10 recipes going at once...

turns out the sheet protector method is good for more than just cleanliness - its good for space too.

after sitting with a pile of recipes on wednesday and having those slippery sheet protectors cause an avalance every time someone exhaled, i got smart... grabbed the pony-tail holder ring that was hanging up in my bedroom and slid it through the top hole in those sheet protectors...

this not only allowed me to keep the recipes together and clean, but also allowed me to put them in the appropriate order and, most importantly, hang the entire thing from my cabinet knob...

allowing me to see exactly what i needed to do next without any mess or waste of space.

dont have a hair tie holder? its ok - this entire creation can be yours for the low price about $11.50 and one quick trip to staples:
Sheet Protectors - $7.49 for 25
2" Binder Rings - $3.99 for 9

Cacio e Pepe

2009-11-02T10:17:00.005-05:00

(formerly titled "making up for past transgressions")

a while back, while perusing tumblr, i came across a recipe; basically pasta with pepper but if you want it to sound fancy, call it Cacio e Pepe.

it sounded different, cheesy and easy so we decided to make it one night.. However, being rule-breakers, we basically did everything that the original recipe said not to do - we didnt buy superfresh black pepper - we just used the little 4 pepper grinder that was up in the cabinet. we didnt use two kinds of cheese - we used whatever it was that we had in the fridge... and that month or two ago? it was ok but WAY too hot (um, thats why the recipe didnt call for 4-color pepper, i suppose?). and not good enough to be worth it. i dont think i even finished mine. and dude, i like to eat, so thats saying something.

i never criticized though - didnt post it as a recipe-gone-wrong - because really, i hate those people on recipezaar who are like "this recipe SUCKS - i made 435 substitutions of the ingredients and it didnt cook right and tasted NOTHING like cheesecake!"

however, even though it may have been our fault the first time, you can understand why i was a bit skeptical to try again... but we agreed to follow the recipe as written this time and - ooh boy - its amazing how different something comes out when you actually FOLLOW the recipe... made the right way with the right ingredients - this one is a winner.

someone should remind the recipezaar folks of that...

Cacio e Pepe
courtesy of We Are Never Full - barely any modifications by me
Click here to import recipe directly into Pepperplate

3/4 pound of spaghetti
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1.5 tablespoons freshly ground pepper
a bit of the pasta cooking liquid (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 cup of freshly ground pecorino romano
1/2 cup freshly ground parmigiano reggiano

***

Prepare spagetti according to directions on package. Reserve some of the liquid (about 1/4 cup)

When pasta only has a few minutes left, begin preparing the sauce.

In a separate pan, on low-medium heat, add your butter, oil and 3/4 tbps pepper.
Allow the butter to melt, swirling the pan around to help it move a bit.

When spaghetti is done, add the reserved cooking liquid to your melted butter/pepper/olive oil sauce and swirl the pot again.

Turn heat down to low. Add your spaghetti and toss once.
Add your cheeses and the rest of the pepper (3/4 tbsp) and toss the spaghetti again in the pan to combine all ingredients.

Top with a sprinkle more of pepper and cheese, if desired.
Serve with warm baguette and wine, of course

so nice we made it twice

2009-10-30T09:45:00.002-04:00

Green tomatoes are not something that i'd traditionally buy on my own, given the fact that it seems as though the only way to use them is in fried green tomatoes. (seriously, google green tomato recipe - i'll wait - they'repretty much ALL variations on fried green tomatoes...)

so why in the world am i talking about them?

because i live with a boy. and he likes different things from me.
see, our CSA has a swap-box. meaning, if i dont want my pac choi (no offense to pac choi), i can bag it up and walk it over to the swap box. If there is nothing in the box, i simply leave my pac choi. If there is something else in there, i can grab it in exchange for my pac choi.

so, last week when the boy went to csa to do the pickup, (which included 1 lb of green tomatoes per person) he noticed a lb of green tomatoes in the swap box. so he bagged up our pac choi (there's a reason it was my example) and took the tomatoes. He then proceeded to have a conversation with a fellow CSAer and found out that they didnt want their green tomatoes either. so he bagged up our mixed greens (not babies - more like chard & kale. i like neither of those) and took a what was now our 3rd lb of green tomatoes. and he calls me, all excited about said tomatoes.

and all i can think is, what in the hell are we going to do with 3lbs of green tomatoes?
and i thought that all week - every time i saw them in the fridge.

and then this week? the share included ANOTHER lb of green tomatoes. thats 4lbs of green tomatoes in our fridge, just in case you are keeping track.

thank god for carrie from our CSA mailing list... she sent out a recipe of sorts for green tomatoes with eggs. and i wanted breakfast-for-dinner anyway, so this appeared to fit the bill AND used some of those tomatoes! (not to mention the csa eggs that have been stockpiling in the fridge)

Frankly, my hopes were not super-high - it just sounded like a tomato scramble which is solid, but not earth shattering, you know? But i was tired. and wanted quick and easy. and breakfast-y.

The boy thought to add a baguette to the mix (confession: we add baguettes to just about every mix... also, wine.) and it made ALL of the difference. The eggs are pretty good on their own but a forkful of eggs piled high on a tiny bit of baguette? TO DIE FOR.

interestingly enough, this is not a breakfast meal. the green tomatoes have some sort of bite to them that really takes the eggs from breakfast staple and transforms them into satisfying dinner.

a dinner so satisfying that we made it two nights in a row.

Green Tomatoes & Eggs
courtesy of the Merchants' Gate CSA Mailing list, adapted by me

serves 2

1 tbsp butter
1/3 of a sweet onion (i suspect any kind of onion would work), diced
3 cloves of garlic, smashed and minced
3 medium/large green tomatoes, cut into small pieces
salt & pepper
5 eggs
splash of milk

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-low until melted.

Throw in the onions & garlic and stir around with a wooden spoon to coat.
Allow to fry for a minute or two.

Throw in green tomatoes, some salt & some pepper (based on your typical tastes). stir around to integrate with the onions & garlic and allow to cook for ~ 6 - 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, in a seperate bowl, scramble your 5 eggs and pour in that splash of milk

Once the onions, garlic and tomatoes have started to get a little crispy at the edges and even brown up a little, pour the eggs over them and allow it to sit for 30 seconds before stirring.

continue to cook eggs in a scrambled egg style (i've tried to go with a slow scramble while making this meal - it seems to work best with the ingredients) to the consistency you like best and then turn off the heat.

Spoon egg mixture onto plates & serve with fresh baguette.

my version of a mashup

2009-08-12T11:43:00.004-04:00

it occured to me the other day that part of the reason i've been so bad about using my CSA stuff this year is partially due to the fact that i am rarely the one going to the site and picking the share up anymore, as the meat-eater has largely taken on that role as of late... that means that i'm not there hearing other people's ideas or being inspired by the sights and smells... instead, i come home and find a fridge full of plastic bags - which doesnt hold the same inspiration that cases of fresh produce do...

therefore, in an effort to be better, i've started keeping a little post-it with the share contents on my desktop at work... hoping that it will inspire me... and it finally worked...

last night, before i left work i called the meat-eater to ask what we'd be doing for dinner... we knew there was guacamole in the cards but what else? leftovers? bah. salad? bah. i finally suggested stuffed zucchini and while the meat-eater was less than enthused, he agreed...

so i scoured the internet for some options... many included beef which just wasnt happening. others included boring, which just wasnt happening either... so i did what i like to do best - found a couple recipes that sounded good and mash them all up into one... and cross my fingers...

the night was almost derailed by the distinct lack of onions in the house but thankfully the M-E was willing to run out and procure one and thus, dinner was saved! i guess thats why i'm marrying him - cause he always saves the day!

Stuffed Zucchini
courtesy of me

1/3 of a baguette

1 tbsp butter
3/4 c couscous
1 1/8 c vegetable broth (or water + bouillon)

2 medium/large zucchini, halved
2 small zucchini, cut into pieces
1/2 of a medium sized red onion
3 small carrots, cut into dice-sided pieces
4 c loosely packed spinach
1 egg, lightly beaten
4-6 oz medium cheddar, half shredded and half diced

Preheat oven to 325°

Prepare baguettes to be used in stuffing:

Slice baguette into rounds, no bigger than 1" thick.
Arrange on cookie sheet and place in the oven ~ 15 minutes, or until dried/crisp (but not browned).
Set aside & raise oven temp to 400°

Prepare couscous (using the Mark Bittman method):

heat 1 tbsp butter over med heat.
when butter is melted, add couscous, stir, and 'toast' for ~ 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.
Add broth and bring to a boil.
Once broth is boiling, remove from heat and cover and let sit for ~6 minutes or more.
Fluff with fork & set aside.

Prepare Zucchini shells:

Slice large zucchini in half, brush cut side with olive oil & place, cut side down, on cookie sheet (line with aluminum or parchment for easier cleanup)
Place in oven ~15 minutes or until zucchini is soft
When zucchini is done, remove from oven and scoop out the insides - including juices - (just leave little 'shells') and set aside.
Reduce oven temp to 350°

Prepare stuffing:

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan over med heat.
Add onions & carrots, stirring and cooking until onions are transparent ~ 5 mins
Add cut up zucchini & keep cooking.
Add the zucchini that was scooped out of the shells
Tear the crispy baguette into stuffing sized pieces and add 1 c to the pan.
Add spinach, in batches, and wilt.
Add ~ 1/3 to 1/2 c of cooked couscous
Remove from heat.
Add diced cheese + 1/2 of the shredded cheese and stir until the shredded cheese has melted.
Allow to cool a bit and then add the egg, stirring to ensure that egg does not 'cook' in the pan.

Divide stuffing between the 4 zucchini shells. Arrange shells on cookie sheet, stuffing side up. Top with remaining shredded cheese. If there is any leftover stuffing, you can cook it right on the cookie sheet, next to the zucchinis, and serve over the remaining couscous.

Place back in the oven for ~20 minutes, or until cheese is melty and stuffing is firm. Serve warm.

Mexi-night done right

2009-08-05T12:16:00.004-04:00

so for like, 9 months, i've been going ON and ON to the m.e. (meat-eater) about what a fabulous cook i am. about all of these things i can make and how awesome they are. about how the kitchen and i - we're like THIS...

and for 9 months, he's mostly been cooking for me... there have been a few exceptions, but most of them not particularly exciting - i mean a salad is a salad - knife skills and cooking skills, while related, arent exactly the same...

anyway, on monday we were up in the poconos (10 pts if you know why) and on our way back, stopped at this awesome little farm stand... you know, because the produce from CSA isnt going bad fast enough as it is - and picked up some stuff, among it, corn. and i swore, up and down, left and right that i'd make my kickass corn & guac when we got home...

and then it was late. and i was tired. and no produce was prepared or put away and no dinner was made or even eaten...

thankfully corn can stand a night or two sitting on the counter... so last night, before i even got undressed from work, i went straight to the kitchen to begin the mexican flavor fiesta...
there would be corn & guac and there would be quesadillas...

since i've already told you about the corn and guac and how amazing it is, let me tell you about the super easy, super quick, baked quesadillias... (did i ever mention the time i was reading a menu and asked a friend what 'qway - C - delias' were? true story...) we'd gotten some jalepeno cheddar from the CSA a while back and really just werent sure what to do with it... i kept saying we should put it in something mexican cause we didnt think we'd like it plain, but the chance just kept passing us by... however, last night we FINALLY got our opportunity...

Note: so after months of not knowing what to do with that cheddar - turns out that it ROCKS all on its own. so much so that if its available at today's pickup, there's a good chance we're claiming it...

Baked Black Bean Quesadillias
courtesy of me

2 large flour tortillias
1/3 of a can of black beans - rinsed
3 oz of jalepeno cheddar, either shredded or cut into small slivers/pieces

Preheat oven @ 350°
cover cookie sheet with aluminum foil
spray aluminum foil with non-stick spray

place one tortillia on greased foil
spread beans out to within about 1/2 inch of the outside edge
cover with cheese
place second tortillia on top of cheese and lightly press down

place in the oven for ~ 12 minutes or until cheese is melty
remove from the oven and, with the back of a clean plate, gently press on the top tortillia for ~ 20-30 seconds

let sit for another minute or two and then cut into segments

serve with salsa & sour cream (optional) and your favorite mexican beer.

Food Porn

2009-07-23T14:23:00.001-04:00

I cant find the recipe that goes with this picture, but I do remember that it was a honey-vanilla panna cotta that I made using a vanilla bean, farm fresh milk (a CSA bonus one week last year) and some local honey. Wildflower honey, I think...

The fact that there is no recipe to go with it is irrelevant - I found something online and adapted poorly - I used too much honey... But isnt that about the prettiest food picture you've ever seen???

epic FAIL*

2009-06-24T09:44:00.007-04:00

After seeing them just yesterday, I tried to make these Chocolate Yogurt Snack Cakes at 11pm last night. I was that excited to make them that it seemed reasonable to cook at 11pm.

Tried being the operative word...

I'm not sure exactly what went wrong - i'm thinking it had something to do with expired oil? (who knew vegetable oil expired??? how come no one ever told me this before???)

They look pretty - i wish they tasted that way...

(*edit: ok, they seem to be better - but still not great - the second day... yes, even though i hated them, i brought them to work anyway... I think unexpired oil, cut down by just a little, would be a big improvement... also, the addition of ice cream would help...)

Chocolate Yogurt Snack Cakes
courtesy of David Lebovitz’s The Sweet Life in Paris, via Smitten Kitchen, minor changes by me

7 ounces (200 grams) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup (125 ml) vegetable oil
1/2 cup (125 ml) plain, 2% greek yogurt
1 cup (200 grams) sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/2 cups (200 grams) flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

Preheat the oven to 350°F , line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper cupcake liners

Melt the chocolate with 1/4 cup of the oil, via microwave - first microwaving for 35 seconds, stiring, and then 1x or 2x more for 15 seconds each, stirring inbetween.

In another bowl, mix the remaining 1/4 cup oil with yougurt, sugar, eggs and vanilla and almond extracts.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the yogurt mixture. Stir lightly a couple times, then add the melted chocolate and stir until just smooth.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake for 25 minutes or until they feel barely set in the middle and a tester or toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack before serving

even the best vegetarians dream of bacon

2009-06-23T13:47:00.003-04:00

if you say you dont, i'll call you a liar...

it smells good. it looks good (except for when there's too much undercooked fat on it - ick!) and the fake stuff doesnt even begin to come close - which is surprising, given that bacos are meat-free...

anyway, given my bad experience with fake-bacon (save for the bacos), i dont have a lot of faith in bacon-flavored stuff... so when the meat-eater (his blog name forever now...) ordered two kinds of bacon salt off of woot not too long ago, i had my doubts...

However, last night I decided to be good and eat some salad for dinner - using some lettuce & cheese from last week's CSA pickup (score! on the not-wasting-food front) - and wanted to add a little healthy protein. So i decided to experiment and make the tofu crispies that i'd seen on nutritionista... however, much like that bacon salt, my expectations were not high...

at the last minute, i thought i'd throw some of the bacon salt on some of the tofu... (because as a result of my laziness, i didnt realize that the tofu should have olive oil & seasoning with it and that just sounded BLAH. oh, and was really fun to clean off of the cookie sheet, as you may expect) what the hell? i expected that i'd be throwing away most of the tofu anyway - so might as well use the bacon salt so that i could tell the meat-eater that i was right and it was gross...

imagine my surprise when not only was bacon salted tofu good, but when the meat-eater and i ended up snacking on, like, half of it, before the salad was even made...

Simple Salad with Bacon-Tofu Crispies
courtesy of me w/ Bacon-Tofu Crispies inspiried by nutritionista

Salad:

1/2 head romaine or similar lettuce, washed and torn
1/2 cucumber, sliced
1/3 red pepper, diced
2 oz horseradish cheddar, cut into small squares
1/2 c bacon tofu crispies (below)
2 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
salt & pepper to taste

Mix all together and serve

Bacon-Tofu Crispies

1 block firm tofu, pressed to remove excess water and cut into pieces the size of dice
olive oil (i forgot that part...)
bacon salt

Preheat oven to 400°
lightly grease cookie sheet with olive oil
spread tofu cubes all over sheet
sprinkle liberally with bacon salt

bake 40 mins at 400, turning once or twice if desired

he said, she said

2009-06-16T13:16:00.008-04:00

you know whats really fun? being a pseudo-vegetarian and dating someone who isnt..

of course, i'm one of those weird 'vegetarians' who thinks that boy vegetarians are a bit... well, not for me. i dont know why - i dont subscribe to traditional gender roles, i dont think, but somehow i truly think that there's a whole 'me man, me eat meat' thing that should be going on with a guy... therefore, as antiquated as my otherwise evolved brain may be, while its not always the easiest way to eat, it is pretty much been the standard in my life... and i'm fairly sure the current meat-eater is sticking around for, well, forever, so its going to stay the standard.

there should be some sort of guide as to how to exist in this kind of relationship without it being a case of one person eats meat and a side and the other just eats a big portion of side... (oh, sure, steal my idea...) because really, as the potential sides-only eater? not so appealing to me... so i'm always looking for another way - a way to take a meal and turn one into something that satisfies the meat eater without leaving the vegetarian with something bland...

so, changing topics, CSA started again this week... summer shares began a week earlier than expected due to the abundance of crops ready for harvesting, but, as is usual, the first week was still fairly greens-heavy while being overall light... bok choi, cooking greens, baby turnips, radishes, spring garlic and scallions. all cool, but save for the garlic and scallions (which, due to a mixup were all but gone by the time i arrived for pickup) not things i use all that much... however, i am bound and determined to not let so much go to waste this season (winter was kindof a bust for me) and wanted to get started on my reformed, non-wasting ways right away...

a number of people posted recipes for the greens and all had a similar take. the meat-eater and i discussed those recipies and modified and came up with our own idea of how to cook the greens into something we'd both like and even went so far as to figure out how to make one meat-eater-friendly while maintaing the fact that the vegetarian version was not lacking. I hope you'll find one or both versions to work for you.

Garlic Greens & Pasta
recipe courtesy of me & the meat-eater

3/4 lb pasta, any kind
1/2 lb mixed cooking greens, leaves torn into small pieces and stems seperated and chopped into 1-inch segments
4 spring garlics - bulbs and 2 inches of stems - diced
1 scallion - bulb and 2 inches of stem - diced
3 tbsp olive oil
3/4 c vegetable broth
1 16 oz can diced tomatoes
salt & pepper
3 oz asiago cheese, cubed

veg:
2 tbsp hazelnuts, chopped

meat eater:
1 pre-grilled chicken breast, cut up into pieces

Prepare pasta according to directions

meanwhile, heat olive oil in frying pan over med heat

add garlic & scallions and cook ~ 5 minutes, until soft

add greens stems and a splash of the broth and cook until stems have softened a bit

add the remainder of the broth and all of the greens

cover and allow to cook ~ 5 minutes

remove cover, stir greens and check for doneness. If you would like them wiltier, cook longer.

drain excess liquid & add tomatoes

stir ~ 1 minute to heat & combine

add drained pasta to the mixture and stir to combine (& reheat the pasta if it had finished too quickly)

***
seperate into 4 serving bowls

add 1/4 of the asiago to each bowl

add 1/2 of the hazelnuts to the vegetarian bowls (above amount assumes 2)

add 1/2 of the cut up chicken breast to each of the meat-eater bowls (above amount assumes 2)

Happy Birthday to me!

2009-06-10T12:09:00.004-04:00

Generally speaking, when its your birthday, someone else brings the cupcakes... however, when you are the one with the food blog (however defunct it may be) it just makes more sense that you'd do it yourself...

The boy had gotten guiness cupcakes on his birthday because I decided that if i was going to bring cupcakes to a boy-birthday, that they had to be 'manly' cupcakes...

but for my birthday? no need to be manly. or overly-flavor complex as we'd be paring them with limey-corona goodness... but I stuck with the 'match the cupcakes to the personality' thing and went with the side of me that thinks that birkenstocks are appropriate footwear almost anywhere you go...

Hippy Dippy Tie-Dye Cupcakes
cake courtesy of Magnolia Bakery with modifications by me, rainbow effect courtesy of the internet

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

food coloring gel

1 container cream cheese frosting
sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350°

Line cupcake tray with cupcake liners

Cream butter and sugar (with electric mixer) until light and fluffy

add eggs to the sugar/butter mixture one egg at a time, beating after each

in a seperate bowl, combine flour and baking powder and whisk to ensure that its all combined

in another bowl, combine milk & vanilla

in small batches, add flour mixture and milk mixture (alternate) and continue to beat the entire time

divide into 6 small batches.

add food coloring to each of the small batches to achieve desired colors

spoon a small amount of each color into each cupcake

repeat with each color until cupcakes are about 3/4 full

bake for ~ 20 minutes, checking after 18 for done-ness

transfer to cooling rack & allow to cool

frost with cream cheese frosting & sprinkle liberally with sprinkles

the simple life

2009-03-31T11:52:00.003-04:00

once upon a time i found making pasta to be significant. because it meant boiling actual water (no pasta-prontas here!) and - omg - heating up sauce... i thought myself a gourmet when i'd add a little ricotta & shredded mozzarella because, i mean, thats like almost baked ziti.

then one day i decided that anything that didnt involve either some level of difficulty, creativity, or odd ingredient found only at fairway was just too basic for me...

that snobbery did not served me well. it caused me to miss out on so many things just because they werent 'different' enough... (sure, it also served me very well in that i ended up eating things i may never have eaten otherwise, but we're focusing on simple here today, ok?????)

today isnt really so much about what i made as it is about that notion of dropping the snobbery at the door. not always going for new-different-wow. instead, sometimes just sticking with the tried-and-true...

Rice Krispie Treats, microwave style
courtesy of Kellogg's, i think...

4 tbsp butter

4 c mini marshmallows

6 c rice krispies

Heat butter in microwave safe bowl for ~ 45 seconds or until melted

stir in mini-marshmallows, coating all with the melted butter

microwave entire mess for 45 seconds, stir and put back in microwave for another 45 seconds

Line a 9x13 pan with waxed paper

When microwave dings, mix rice krispies in with buttery marshmallowy goodness until well combined (*note - could also add a variety of other things now - chocolate chips, peanut butter, whatever... or could make this with a different kind of cereal... go crazy...)

scoop into wax-papered pan

cover with another sheet of waxed paper and press down

Allow to cool (could be in the fridge to speed it up) and then cut into 24 squares

try not to eat them all at once...

because quiche is totally easier than grilled cheese

2009-03-10T12:08:00.006-04:00

Last October i spent a considerable amount of time down with the family in Charlotte, NC... one of the days i was there, we headed out to a cute little cafe down in Davidson for lunch... a couple of us ordered sandwiches and two ordered quiche... when lunch seemed to be taking forever, someone remarked that someone 'had to go and order the quiche...' which caused me to comment back - 'quiche is easier than grilled cheese'...

hilarity ensued, as my family in no way believed that quiche was easier than grilled cheese... my take? sure, it may take longer to cook but i honestly believe that, if made using the simple ingredients found in the quiche they had ordered, it was less hands-on time-intensive... their take? "you think everything is easy..."

of course i was HELL BENT on proving them wrong and proving just how easy quiche could be... and i did. sure, we went the easy route - premade pie crust & pre-shredded cheese, but my claim of no more than 10 minutes hands on time proved to be pretty much on target - i think i had it in the oven in 7...

all that said? this isnt that quiche... this is typical 'me' food - meaning i take what starts off as an easy dinner and complicate it slightly... but i still maintain that quiche is easy to make - and hard to mess up...

I invented this combination last night due to the fact that, as a result of an insane schedule, the boyfriend (soon to be guest blogger) has been cooking for me nearly every single night and i really wanted to cook something good for him for once... but needed it to be fairly quick as that insane schedule will be raging on for at least another few weeks...

given that i had no idea what i was really putting together, i was pleasantly surprised by the results... and glad that i have this blog as a place to record the process as otherwise i never would be able to replicate it again...

Confetti Quiche
Courtesy of me

1 par baked pie crust (~10 mins on 350° should suffice)
2 c shredded emmenthaler, divided

2 tbsp butter
2 shallots, diced

3 c loosely packed baby spinach

1 tbsp flour
2 plum tomatoes, insides removed and diced
1 small can no-salt corn (drained)

4 eggs
1 c half & half

salt, pepper, nutmeg

***

Preheat oven to 350°

Line pie crust with 1 c of the shredded emmenthaler and set aside

over medium heat, saute shallots in butter for about 4 minutes
add spinach and continue cooking until wilted.
turn off heat and stir in flour, tomatoes & corn

Spread mixture onto the emmentaler-lined pie crust. Sprinkle with nutmeg, if desired

In a separate bowl, mix eggs and half & half with a couple dashes of salt & pepper
Pour egg mixture into the pie crust (over the vegetable mixture)
top with remaining emmenthaler
top that with a couple dashes of salt, pepper and nutmeg, if desired

Bake at 350° for ~35 minutes
Allow to sit for 5 minutes and then serve

while i continue to slack

2009-02-06T14:03:00.002-05:00

i'll suggest that you visit sweetfoods and peruse the 70 food blogs that deserve your attention...

i'd like to be able to mass-add them all to my google homepage...

redemption

2009-01-07T00:22:00.005-05:00

aw, that martha - she always comes through, doesnt she?

i know i skipped over a whole lot of stuff - thanksgiving being a big one - but its more important that i present you with martha's redemption...

see, i host christmas (ok, this was probably the last time i'll be hosting christmas, but whatever) and last year, i think my parents liked breakfast more than anything else... so i felt pressure to outdo myself this year...

i get these daily emails from martha - lots of them actually - but one really caught my eye and instantly, i knew what we'd be having for breakfast on christmas morning...

Thankfully, martha didnt disappoint this time...

Baked French Toast with Mixed Berry Sauce
courtesy of Martha Stewart - small changes by me

4 large eggs
3/4 cup 1% milk
3/4 cup light cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 thick slices challah, brioche, or other egg bread (1 inch thick)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 bag (10 to 12 ounces) mixed berries, thawed
1/4 cup sugar

In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, whisk together eggs, milk, 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla, and salt.

Arrange bread in dish in a single layer; let soak 30 minutes. Turn bread over; cover, and refrigerate overnight.

the next day...
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brush a rimmed baking sheet with butter.

Carefully transfer soaked bread to sheet.

Bake until French toast is set in center and lightly browned on the bottom, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine berries and remaining 1/4 cup sugar, mashing lightly with a fork.

Remove french toast from baking sheet and top with berry sauce.

Dear Martha Stewart,

2008-11-24T23:00:00.005-05:00

Hi Martha. How's it going?

You know, I've always been a Martha fan. own the cookie book. subscribe to some of the daily emails. even almost went to work for your company (albeit while you were *ahem* away...)

So the other day when yet another martha stewart mac & cheese recipe landed in my inbox, i thought to myself, 'self... you know all that CSA cheese you got? how you thought it was totally neccessary to order 24 oz of cheese at one time? well, self, this recipe will totally use up some of that! 12 oz of that! do it! make it!' and since i always listen to the voices in my head (when they are suggesting that i eat bad-for-me food) i printed out that recipe and headed to the grocery store to pick up a few things i didnt have. namely macaroni and panko... 3 cups of panko. even though that sounded like an awful lot of panko... but martha, you are an empire unto yourself. who am i to question?

so even as i worked - cooking the mac & making the cheese sauce - i just kept thinking - 3 cups? i must be reading that wrong... but no, i'd look at it time and again and sure enough, 3 cups. and then i'd think to myself... well she said 3 c of fresh breadcrumbs... is it possible that panko is THAT MUCH DENSER? and i'm all like, nah. just a different taste...

so anyway, i motored on and put it all together and poured that panko/butter mix over the top. over and over and over. it felt like i was my dog burying my bone in the backyard. or a kid in a sandbox. yeah, kid in a sandbox - lets stick with that one...

but martha, i had faith. faith in you and your copywriters and your commenters... it would be good. it would be fine.

and then i took it out. and lady, you need to hire new editors... because there aint NO WAY IN HELL that there should have been 3 cups of breadcrumbs - fresh, panko or otherwise - on top of that mac & cheese. NO WAY IN HELL.

i scraped off about 2 cups

and honestly, the mac & cheese was still fairly dry.

therefore martha, consider this my PSA... because now when people google 'martha stewart macaroni and cheese recipe correction' they'll end up here. instead of writing you letters telling you that you owe them $2.49 for all that wasted panko...

Sincerely,
Kristen at kitchenhell

Macaroni & Cheese
slightly adjusted and corrected courtesy of me with original mistake from Martha Stewart

1 pound elbo macaroni
Coarse sea salt

6 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3 cups shredded (12 ounces) sharp white cheddar cheese
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup panko

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water 1 to 2 minutes less than package instructions.
Drain, rinse with cool water, and place into baking dish (I used an 8x12. You can use something bigger or make individual portions - cooking times are listed at the end).

Meanwhile, heat 4 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
Add flour; cook, whisking, 1 minute.
Add milk, cayenne, nutmeg, and 2 teaspoons salt; bring to a simmer.
Cook, whisking, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 2 to 3 minutes.
Whisk in cheeses until smooth.

Pour over pasta; toss to coat.

Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter; toss with breadcrumbs.
Sprinkle over pasta.

Cover baking dish with foil. Bake until bubbling, 60 to 70 minutes for large dishes, 40 to 50 minutes for small. (check after 35 mins for individual sized dishes)

Remove foil; continue baking until golden, 5 to 10 minutes more.

well dont i look stupid...

2008-11-22T16:01:00.004-05:00

so the whole entire premise of this blog is how i have a craptastic little kitchen and cant do much in here but try anyway.

and then mark bittman comes along and lets you know that size doesnt matter.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/20/mark-bittmans-bad-kitchen/

thanks mark, for ruining my whole angle...

Prepping for thanksgiving?

i'll be making pretty much the exact same stuff as last year and highly recommend that you copy my menu because it pretty much kicked ass. (hence the reason its being done again)